Each week throughout the season, the Playoff Predictor will use ESPN's Football Power Index (FPI) and human logic (i.e., the eye test) to determine which teams are still alive in the chase for the College Football Playoff. Unlike the weekly College Football Playoff rankings, which look at a team’s body of work through that point in the season, the Playoff Predictor is intended to project which teams will be there when it matters -- when the final rankings are announced.
The Playoff Predictor sees eight teams that are still alive for the playoff. Although there appear to be four clear spots – Oklahoma, Alabama, Clemson and the Big Ten winner – ESPN’s FPI projects there is a 54 percent chance that Alabama or Clemson loses this weekend, so the field is far from set heading into Championship Weekend.