The American and the Quest for Final Playoff Spot

Originally posted on Mike Farrell Sports
By Austin Walls | Last updated Oct 30, 2025 10:34 AM ET

It is almost certain now that the highest ranked American Conference team is the team that will be claiming the final spot in the College Football Playoff. As things currently stand, there are five teams in contention. Those teams are the Navy Midshipmen (7-0, 5-0), the Tulane Green Wave (6-1, 3-0), the No. 25 Memphis Tigers (7-1, 3-1), the USF Bulls (6-2, 3-1) and the North Texas Mean Green (7-1, 3-1).

Best Positioned Moving Forward

With the Memphis Tigers winning at home against the then-No. 18 USF Bulls, it now puts them in prime position to not only win the conference, but also take the final spot in the playoff. They are one of three teams in the conference already with seven wins. Memphis is best positioned due to Navy’s upcoming schedule.

Navy might be undefeated, but they still have clashes with North Texas (Nov. 1), the No. 12 Notre Dame (5-2) (Nov. 1) and USF (Nov. 15). They end the month with Memphis (Nov. 27). If Navy somehow remains undefeated by the end of November, they likely will jump Memphis in the odds for the final playoff spot

Outside Looking In

For Tulane, they have two games against teams above .500. The most notable of these is Green Waves’s matchup on the road against Memphis on Nov. 7. If Tulane wins on the road, they would take control of the American standings. They likely would also be the favorite for CFP spot as the only other difficult matchup on their schedule is another away clash this time with Temple (5-3, 3-1) on Nov. 22.

For the USF Bulls, they will have to win all of their remaining games and still get some help from the other results. With two losses already and undefeated Navy as their only remaining difficult opponent on Nov. 15, the Bulls will need favorable results such as a Tulane win against Memphis and multiple Navy losses in November. It’s not impossible, it is just unlikely.

Lastly, North Texas is also in the hunt. However, with the schedule they have, the Mean Green could end the season with the three losses (USF, Navy and potentially Temple). They will need to beat Navy this weekend if they want any shot at playing in the American Championship or further.

Ultimately, the final month will determine everything in the American and who will have the best chance to play in the CFP.

This article first appeared on Mike Farrell Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: