Five schools that could sneak into the College Football Playoff

Entering Week 10 of the college football season, power-conference races across the country remain far from settled. However, some teams appear like virtual shoo-ins to the 12-team College Football Playoff.

Think Ohio State, Indiana, Texas A&M and Alabama. Yet many others are jockeying for position as the first CFP rankings will be unveiled on Tuesday, Nov. 4, at 8 p.m. EST.

A wave of teams ranked in the top 15 of the major polls should be heavily in the CFP at-large conversation, but what about squads that are further down in the polls or not ranked at all?

Five sleepers to land a College Football Playoff invite

Texas Longhorns (6-2 overall, No. 20 in AP top 25)

It's crazy to consider Texas as a sleeper for the CFP, given that the Longhorns were No. 1 in the preseason AP poll. Texas has won three straight after a rough start, although its only high-quality win is against then-No. 6 Oklahoma. The Longhorns have top-10 teams in No. 9 Vanderbilt, No. 5 Georgia and No. 3 Texas A&M left on their schedule. Texas has to win at least two of those games to have a shot at the CFP.

USC Trojans (5-2 overall, No. 23 in the AP top 25)

The Trojans have one good triumph, and it came at home against Michigan. USC likely needs to win out to have a realistic chance at the CFP. Southern Cal travels to Nebraska and No. 6 Oregon. The Trojans host Northwestern, Iowa and UCLA. That's a tall task, but anything's possible. USC's two road contests, though, are brutal.

Pittsburgh Panthers (6-2 overall)

After starting 2-2, the Panthers have won four consecutive games. The team's offense is scoring a ton of points these days. Pitt likely needs to get to 10-2 to make the CFP, although the Panthers only have one Atlantic Coast Conference setback thus far. Ample opportunities for resume-building wins are on the horizon. Pittsburgh will face top-15 teams in No. 12 Notre Dame, No. 8 Georgia Tech and No. 10 Miami. Yikes.

Iowa Hawkeyes (6-2 overall)

Since falling to now No. 2 Indiana, the Hawkeyes have rattled off three straight wins. Plus, Iowa only has one Big Ten Conference loss. Still, it feels like the Hawkeyes can't afford any more defeats in the regular season if they want to reach the CFP. Iowa gets Oregon at home, but the Hawkeyes must head to both Southern Cal and Nebraska. That's tough sledding.

North Texas Mean Green (7-1 overall)

The Mean Green is in the thick of the American Conference race. North Texas, should it sweep its remaining games, has a great shot to get to the CFP. This Saturday afternoon, North Texas will square off against undefeated Navy. Should the Mean Green prevail, its final three contests are all extremely winnable.