As everyone knows this is the first season of the College Football Playoff. Four teams will make it and everyone else will have some nice parting gifts. Take note that these rankings aren’t the Top 4 teams in the country, they’re the four teams with the best chance to make the playoff.

#1 Florida State Seminoles

The Seminoles have won 25 consecutive games and they still haven’t played their best game yet. It’s probably not a foregone conclusion that the ‘Noles go undefeated, as they have some tricky games at Miami, home against Florida and then the ACC Championship remaining, but they certainly have the easiest road to the playoff of all the contenders.

#2 Mississippi State Bulldogs

Mississippi State has their toughest test of the season against Alabama in Tuscaloosa this Saturday. This isn’t necessarily an elimination game for the Bulldogs as the committee is supposed to look at the entire body of work and a close loss at Alabama shouldn’t hurt them too badly, assuming they win their remaining games.

#3 Oregon Ducks

The Ducks are playing the best football of any team in the nation right now and they look like they’re poised to win out. If they do win their remaining games, including a probable matchup against Arizona State in the Pac 12 title game, they will find a way into the “Final Four.”

#4 TCU Horned Frogs

TCU is our No. 4 team, not Alabama.

Is TCU a better team than Alabama?

Probably not, but TCU has played out the toughest parts of their schedule and there’s no Big 12 title game. If Alabama is going to make it in they have to be perfect in a stretch that included an emotional game against LSU, Mississippi State, Auburn and then the SEC Championship. That’s a tough stretch to be perfect throughout.

Even if Alabama can navigate those rough waters, it would mean Mississippi State would have lost and TCU would have a good case against them.

Again, these aren’t the best four teams in the nation, they’re the teams that are most likely to make it into the national playoff. We believe that there will be a great amount of diversity in the committee’s selections and it remains to be seen how much weight they will put into conference champions.