USC is still alive in the College Football Playoff picture.
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Despite two losses — to Washington State and Notre Dame — the Trojans have kept their playoff hopes alive with back-to-back wins over Arizona State and Arizona in Weeks 9 and 10, respectively. And while it's extremely unlikely they become the first two-loss playoff team ever, there are a few paths of chaos.
They need a ton of help, obviously.
Here's a team-by-team breakdown of the chaos required for a two-loss USC to make the College Football Playoff. To be clear — so my Twitter mentions aren't pummeled — this is exactly what was stated, chaos, that is only used to demonstrate how the Trojans could make the four-team field.
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Alabama: The Crimson Tide win out to secure the No. 1 seed in the playoff.
Georgia: Georgia loses Auburn by two scores in Week 11 and is throttled by Alabama in the SEC Championship. The Bulldogs are out.
Notre Dame: The Irish loses to Miami in Week 11 and Stanford in Week 13. The Irish are out.
Clemson: The Tigers win out and get the No. 2 seed.
Oklahoma: The Sooners also win out and receive the No. 3 seed. (Oklahoma could also flip with Clemson, though for this exercise, that's irrelevant.)
Wisconsin: Wisconsin is shocked by Iowa at home in Week 11. The Badgers still win the Big Ten West but lose in the conference championship. They are out.
Miami (FL): The Hurricanes beat Notre Dame but are shocked in Week 13 by Pittsburgh. Miami wins the ACC Coastal but are pummeled by Clemson in the conference championship. Miami is out.
TCU: The Horned Frogs lose at Oklahoma in Week 11 — by more than 10 points — but still make the Big 12 Championship because of losses by Iowa State (at Kansas State in Week 13), Oklahoma State (at Iowa State in Week 11) and West Virginia (at Oklahoma in Week 13). They're out after a loss in the title game.
Auburn: Two weeks after Auburn's impressive win over Georgia, the Tigers lose to Alabama. They're out.
Washington: Washington wins their final three regular-season games but loses to USC in the Pac-12 Championship. The Huskies are out
Ohio State: The Buckeyes suffer a third loss, this one to Michigan in Week 13. Ohio State is out.
Michigan State: Michigan State loses to Ohio State in Week 11 but still wins the Big Ten East thanks to a Week 12 loss by Michigan at Wisconsin. The Spartans win the Big Ten Championship but are still out.
Oklahoma State: The Cowboys lose at Iowa State in Week 11. The Cowboys are out.
USC: The Trojans win out, beating Colorado and UCLA in the regular season and Washington in the Pac-12 Championship. USC gets the No. 4 seed.
There are other ways in which USC can reach the playoff — or at the very least, have a strong case for a spot — but as of Week 11, this appears to be the most realistic.
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NEXT: Predictions for the College Football Playoff Rankings in Week 11
