College Football Playoff picture after Week 10: While Nick Saban's Alabama thrives, does Deion Sanders have any CFP chances left?

We are into the last month of the college football regular season, with the College Football Playoff picture becoming ever more apparent. As it stands, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State and Florida State look like the front runners to attend the coveted playoff at the end of December.

Other schools like Oklahoma, Penn State, USC and LSU, who at points of the season could be considered playoff hopefuls, have dropped from the race.

Oklahoma's second straight loss, this time to rival school Oklahoma State in what could be the last Bedlam Series, meant the Sooners would probably miss the Big 12 championship game and any chance of going to the playoff.

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Could Deion Sanders lead the Colorado Buffaloes to the College Football Playoff?

The Buffaloes will miss the College Football Playoff this year, as they currently stand near the bottom of the Pac-12 standings with a record of 4-5. No school with more than one loss has ever been selected for the playoff since the system's inception in 2014.

Currently, the Buffs should be more concerned with getting at least 6-6. A bowl-eligible season of 7-6 is still possible for Deion Sanders and co., but unlikely as they still have to face No. 23 Arizona (6-3), Washington State (4-5) and No. 13 Utah (7-2).

As bad as Washington State's record looks, the school was ranked for a reasonable span in 2023, which means the Cougars have the talent to defeat Colorado.

Let's not forget that Colorado was a 1-11 school last year, and what Deion Sanders has achieved is impressive, but expectations are nowadays more grounded in reality at Boulder.

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Which teams are in contention for the College Football Playoff?

There are currently five schools with perfect records that have an excellent chance of making the playoffs, and those are Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Florida State and Washington. However, Ohio State and Michigan still have to face each other, and whoever loses that game will probably miss out on a College Football Playoff spot.

Behind them, there are four one-loss schools with a chance to make the playoff: Oregon, Alabama, Texas and Penn State. The Ducks have a clear path, which is making the Pac-12 championship game and beating the Huskies there.

Alabama's path is even clearer as the victory over LSU this week means the Crimson Tide will certainly make the Southeastern Conference title game. Beating the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs for the SEC championship is a sure-fire way to make the trip to the College Football Playoff.

Alabama's turnaround has been amazing. After a Week 2 defeat to Texas, everyone discounting the Crimson Tide knows they look like they have a fair chance of making the playoffs.

Texas and Penn State's paths are muddier. Texas will almost surely make the Big 12 title game, but Oklahoma's recent defeats mean the Longhorns' loss to the Sooners looks even uglier on their resume.

Now that the Sooners probably won't make the Big 12 championship game, Texas will be unable to use revenge over Oklahoma as an argument for the selection committee. The Longhorns are left at the mercy of the College Football Playoff committee.

Penn State would need to defeat Michigan next week and hope the Wolverines defeat Ohio State to have any chance of being selected. That's not a likely outcome, and even that way, the Nittany Lions wouldn't make the Big Ten title game. For that, they would need the Buckeyes to lose yet another matchup, which seems far-fetched.