Updated Sep 3, 2015 at 5:01p ET With the college football season set to begin, WhatIfSports.com is fast-forwarding to December 31, 2015, when the second year of the College Football Playoff will commence. We selected the top four teams from the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 – Ohio State, TCU, Alabama and Baylor – and used our college football simulation engine to play each matchup 1,001 times, advancing the team with the highest winning percentage. While using the AP’s top-ranked teams may not seem like the most creative selection process, the strategy was a success in 2014, when we accurately picked three of four playoff participants. Semifinal I: Baylor vs. Ohio State The defending champs were a unanimous pick for the AP’s top team and they’re rewarded with a matchup against No. 4 Baylor. The two schools are unfamiliar foes, having last played in 1982 (a 21-14 victory for the Buckeyes), and yet it’s a bit of a grudge match for the Bears, who were excluded from the inaugural College Football Playoff in favor of Ohio State. Baylor graduated quarterback Bryce Petty, but backup Seth Russell has gotten some reps the past two seasons and should be poised to keep the Bears offense chugging. Russell has two excellent targets in K.D. Cannon and Corey Coleman, who each accumulated 1,000 receiving yards in 2014. He’ll also have the support of junior running back Shock Linwood, who totaled 1,252 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns a season ago…
Continue Reading: WhatIfSports 2015 College Football Playoff Prediction
