The Road to Las Vegas: Review-Journal’s Week 8 CFP projections

Editor’s note: Each Sunday the Las Vegas Review-Journal will select the four teams most likely to be in the CFP semifinals ahead of the title game in Las Vegas on Jan. 25.

Ohio State was not included in our rankings last week with the expectation that the Buckeyes will be without starting quarterback Julian Sayin, who is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury in his throwing arm.

The Buckeyes looked like a completely different team Saturday night in their loss to USC.

Backup Luke Fahey made his first start for Ohio State for the injured Sayin. While Fahey was limited, Ohio State couldn’t get anything going on the road against the Trojans.

Even if Ohio State caught USC at the wrong time, with the Trojans coming off a 24-7 loss at Wisconsin and having lost twice in its previous four games, the Buckeyes still didn’t look a top-four team.

That started in the first half where Ohio State three times had to settle for field goals of 39 yards or shorter, and the Buckeyes were held to nine points through three quarters.

Ohio State wasn’t the only highly-ranked team that struggled on Halloween.

Here are this week’s Review-Journal CFP Las Vegas Top Four projections:

1. Miami (8-0)

Miami avoided a Halloween trick from a tough Bill Belichick-led North Carolina squad in Chapel Hill. Miami’s defense came up with a late fumble with North Carolina driving that led to a touchdown with just over two minutes left for a 38-35 victory.

The win, and also the wake-up call, is just what Miami needed heading into next week’s Top 5 matchup at No. 5 Notre Dame. It’s the last big test in the regular season for Miami, so a win next week could all but lock up a top-four seed for the Hurricanes.

2. Georgia (7-1)

Georgia, after a bye week following its lone loss of the season to Auburn, got back to form in a much-needed 27-8 win over rival Florida on Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

It was Georgia’s defense that stole the show. Georgia forced four turnovers and held Florida to 48 rushing yards in a game Bulldogs quarterback Gunner Stockton threw for 103 yards.

Georgia has two more ranked teams on its schedule — No. 12 Ole Miss next week on the road and hosting No. 23 Missouri on Nov. 14 — and the Bulldogs’ defense looks poised to carry them to a high seed.

3. Utah (8-0)

Utah showed no signs of a letdown after a close win over Houston last week and did not get caught looking ahead to next week’s Holy War rivalry game against No. 8-ranked BYU. The Utes scored 42 points in the first half and rolled to a 49-25 rout at Cincinnati for the team’s 14th straight win.

The rivalry game next Saturday will be Utah’s last big test in the regular season, and the Utes should be in prime position for a high seed with a win over the Cougars.

4. Indiana (8-1)

It wasn’t pretty (again), but Indiana kept on winning. Despite some questionable coaching choices from Indiana coach Curt Cignetti, the Hoosiers escaped with a 23-16 overtime win over Minnesota.

Indiana benched quarterback Josh Hoover and turned to Grant Wilson, who threw the game-winning touchdown in overtime.

The decision paid off for Cignetti, who settled for a 34-yard field goal on fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter with Indiana trailing 13-10 and then let 24 seconds wind off the clock on defense before Minnesota and Indiana, respectively, traded 60-yard field goals at the end of regulation to force overtime.

Staff writer Adam Hill contributed to this story.

Contact Alex Wright at [email protected]. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.