Breaking Down Why The Oregon Ducks Playoff Bubble Just Got More Interesting

Heather Dinich of ESPN released her updated College Football Playoff bubble watch on Tuesday, and she went conference by conference, listing the teams she projects to be in and out. Dinich has three teams from the Big Ten in as of now. 

Big Ten With Three Teams In 

In: Ohio State Buckeyes, Indiana Hoosiers, Oregon Ducks 

First Team Out: USC Trojans 

In the Mix: Michigan Wolverines

Ohio State and Indiana are each undefeated and are the top two ranked teams in the country, making them close to being a playoff lock.

Dinich has Oregon as the last team in from the Big Ten. The Ducks were ranked No. 9 in lat week’s playoff rankings, but they look poised to move up a spot or two after their road win over Iowa coupled with then-No. 7 BYU losing. 

If the Ducks win their remaining three games, there is no doubt that they would earn one of the at-large bids into the playoff. However, if they lose to either Minnesota, USC, or Washington, they could be having to sweat it out on the final selection show before the 12-team playoff is announced. 

This was not the case at all for Oregon last year as they went a perfect 13-0, going undefeated in the regular season and securing the auto-bid with a Big Ten championship. The Ducks were ranked No. 1 in the playoff, but fell in the quarterfinals to eventual national champion Ohio State. 

The first team out according to Dinich will be in Autzen Stadium in a matter of weeks to play the Ducks, the USC Trojans. USC is 7-2 this season and still have hopes of their first playoff appearance. If USC can run the table, they will have a great case to make it over Oregon with the head-to-head tiebreaker. 

Another team still in the mix is Michigan, The Wolverines have been flying under the radar, but still just have two losses. If they could win out, including beating Ohio State, they would have a good chance to make it in as well. 

In 2024, four Big Ten teams made it into the playoff; Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State, and Indiana. The conference battling with the Big Ten for the most spots, the SEC, also had four. This year it appears the SEC may have the edge when it comes to the amount of teams in. 

Dinich currently has five SEC teams in; the Alabama Crimson Tide, Georgia Bulldogs, Ole Miss Rebels, Texas Longhorns, and Texas A&M Aggies. With five from the SEC and three from the Big Ten, she rounds of the 12-team playoff with Texas Tech of the Big 12, Georgia Tech of the ACC, independent Notre Dame, and South Florida of the American.