Through three weeks, here's a look at Oklahoma and the teams most likely to affect OU and its chances to make the four-team playoff.
Oklahoma (3-0)
Best win: 34-10 over Tennessee last week.
What's next: at West Virginia Saturday.
Trending: nosing upward. It never hurts to beat an SEC team, even if it is Tennessee. OU will gain some favor and momentum this week if it beats WVU, considering WVU played Alabama well and also is coming off a win over Maryland.
Chances of making the playoff: Solid. The reason is because if OU goes unbeaten, it gets in. No question. A loss and the Sooners will need help.
In or out if the playoff started today: In. Seed No. 4
Alabama (3-0)
Best win: Beat West Virginia in the season opener.
What's next: Home against Florida Saturday.
Trending: Stable. A win over Florida doesn't change anything, however a loss would pretty much sink Alabama.
How Bama affects Oklahoma: One of a handful of SEC teams that will challenge the Sooners as far as strength of schedule goes. Bama at Ole Miss on Oct. 4 will be one that shakes the standings up.
Chances of making the playoff over Oklahoma: Fair. Bama does have that win over WVU and OU has the win over Tennessee. It's probably a "push" at this point.
In or out if the playoff started today: Out, but back in with a win over Ole Miss next week.
Auburn (2-0)
Best win: The Tigers beat Arkansas at home 45-21.
What's next: Auburn is at Kansas State Thursday.
Trending: Upward. All eyes on the Tigers and the Cats on Thursday night.
How Auburn affects Oklahoma: Sooners will be huge K-State fans Thursday. A win by KSU and the Big 12 is elevated. A win by Auburn and the Sooners-K-State matchup later this season loses a bit of shine.
Chances of making the playoff over Oklahoma: Very, very good if the Tigers win at K-State. It would be one of the best road wins of the season, by any team.
In or out if the playoff started today: Check back Thursday.
Florida State (2-0)
Best win: vs. Oklahoma State in Dallas.
What's next: FSU is home vs. No. 22 Clemson.
Trending: Even. Nothing to see here.
How FSU affects Oklahoma: If FSU keeps winning the Seminoles are in. If OU keeps winning, the same thing goes. If FSU loses, the Seminoles are most likely out, so comparing OU and FSU is moot.
Chances of making the playoff: Lock. Maybe Clemson can beat the Noles Saturday. Yeah, probably not.
In or out if the playoff started today: In. Seed No. 1
Oregon (3-0)
Best win: Michigan State. One of the best wins by any team this season.
What's next: At Washington State on Saturday.
Trending: Upward. Until Oregon plays at UCLA in mid October, the Ducks will be living off of their win against Michigan State.
How Oregon affects Oklahoma: OU needs Oregon to lose. Simple as that. The Ducks will not fall below OU in anyone's mind this season if they go unbeaten.
Chances of making the playoff over Oklahoma: Very good. The Michigan State win is more-impressive than OU's win over Tennessee. Plus, the Ducks still have games left against Stanford and UCLA. Only a K-State win over Auburn could help OU if the Sooners run the table and are compared against an unbeaten Oregon team.
In or out if the playoff started today: In. Seed No. 2.
Texas A&M (3-0)
Best win: At South Carolina in Week 1.
What's next: at SMU Saturday
Trending: Upward. Hard to get wins over top-10 teams on the road in the SEC. Nice start to the season for the Aggies.
How the Aggies will affect Oklahoma: If Texas A&M is compared to OU,
Chances of making the playoff over Oklahoma: Good to quite good. If OU and A&M are compared, it would be tough to give the Sooners the edge, considering OU won't have a quality road win at the level of A&M's.
In or out if the playoff started today: In. No. 3 seed.
Others to watch heading into week 4: Notre Dame (3-0) Not that impressive in its win over Purdue, but the Irish are unbeaten and have a killer schedule. If they continue to win, or get through the year with just a single loss, they'll be in the playoff at the end of the season. Notre Dame still has games left against Stanford, Florida State, Arizona State, Louisville and USC ... Baylor (3-0) got another win against a bad opponent, although the Bears do get credit for a road win over Buffalo ... Michigan State (1-1) is really good. Too bad the Spartans won't be able to prove it. Their schedule the rest of the way is dreadful ... LSU (3-0 )is just another SEC team that will be in the picture with its schedule. The Tigers have Mississippi State this week in Baton Rouge, La. ... Georgia (1-1) Bulldogs took a hit with a road loss at South Carolina, but there's enough time to make a run. One more loss and their probably done ... Stanford (2-1) has a bad loss at home to USC, but the Cardinal still get a shot at Oregon. A win over the Ducks would go a long way ... Ole Miss (3-0) is ranked No. 10 in the nation. And the Rebels play in the SEC. That's a good combination. We're about to find out how good they are. After this week, Ole Miss plays in order: Alabama, A&M, Tennessee, LSU and Auburn ... UCLA (3-0) seems like it's more potential than anything at this point, however the Bruins did win against Texas in Texas with a back-up quarterback. Do you trust them to make a run? ... South Carolina is going to have to be perfect the rest of the way, and it can be done. Of the SEC teams, South Carolina has maybe the most-managable schedule the rest of the way, avoiding Alabama and Ole Miss.
Last week's top-four: 1. FSU, 2. Oregon, 3. USC, 4. Oklahoma
No longer looking at: USC (2-1), Virginia Tech (2-1), Ohio State (2-1)
Follow Andrew Gilman on Twitter: @andrewgilmanOK
