How Recent COVID-19 Effects are Affecting Clemson in CFP, Heisman
Two weeks ago, Trevor Lawrence contracted COVID-19 and missed two games, including a top-4 matchup against Notre Dame.
His Heisman Trophy odds plummeted and he was no longer the favorite. Meanwhile, Clemson lost the game to the Irish in double overtime and fell to No. 4 in the polls.
While there's still a path to the College Football Playoff, there continued to be a ton of unknowns outside of the Tigers. That went up a few notches this week as the SEC and Big Ten took huge hits because of COVID-19, and it could most certainly affect the four teams chosen to play for the national championship.
Tuesday, Alabama and LSU had their annual rivalry game postponed...for now. It's going to be difficult to make that game up, considering LSU is supposed to take on Florida on Dec. 12, the SEC's make-up weekend.
The Tigers are out of the SEC West hunt, but the top-ranked Crimson Tide needs the game to impress the committee and keep Mac Jones in the Heisman race.
Meanwhile, Ohio State suffered its biggest blow of the season and it wasn't because of injury. The Buckeyes' game against Maryland was canceled Wednesday after the Terripans announced too many COVID-19 cases to play the contest. It's considered no-contest in the Big Ten because there are no make-up weeks in its 9-week schedule.
At most, Ohio State can play eight games in its Big Ten title run. Is that enough in the committee's eyes?
Clemson can play 12. For you non-math people, that's a difference of four games. How is one team that plays eight going to get in while another that plays 12 is considered unworthy?
To be fair, we haven't heard from the CFP committee, and if Clemson wins out the rest of the way and avenges its loss to No. 2 Notre Dame in the ACC title game, it's going to be impossible to keep the Tigers out.
So they control their own destiny. But seeding will matter. It's not just about getting in the CFP. That path is clear. It's also about who the Tigers will face if they're able to get there.
Will Ohio State be deserving if the best team it beats all year is Indiana? Is Oregon in if it runs the table in a 7-game maximum Pac-12? Could Notre Dame and Clemson both make the CFP?
And when it comes to the Heisman, is OSU QB Justin Fields still in the hunt? He's the odds-on favorite at the moment at Betonline.ag. Is he worthy, though, if he plays eight games while Lawrence, who was out with something also beyond his control, plays 10 games?
These are questions that have to be answered by the powers that be: the committee and the Heisman voters.
Lawrence shouldn't be considered out of the race, even though he missed his potential Heisman moment at Notre Dame last week because Fields will have an incomplete resume. What's going to be his Heisman moment? And Jones could end up playing the same number of games as Lawrence. That should equal that race.
The bottom line, Lawrence can still win the Heisman. Ohio State is going to struggle to prove it has enough quality wins to be in the CFP, and Alabama might end up with an extra week off to prepare and get better. Not putting players at risk of injury, something Clemson's battled with all year, is a huge advantage.
Nobody has ever argued that college football is fair. This year, more than any other, proper context must be taken.
