Then there were six. College Football Week 8 destroyed the hopes and dreams of going undefeated for three more teams. The Pac-12 continued to cannibalize its chances of a place in the College Football Playoffs, an ACC powerhouse put paid to a contender the conference crown, and the last team to win a title by going undefeated roared once more to thwart a rival in Death Valley.
Which teams survived another week of college football thrills and spills, how did they make it through, and who is their next obstacle in the quest to go through the entire college football season undefeated?
College Football Teams Undefeated After Week 8
The Pac-12 simply cannot have nice things. By “nice things,” we, of course, mean an undefeated team that runs the table, wins the title game, and puts the conference back in the College Football Playoffs. After USC’s defeat to Utah in the previous week, the UCLA Bruins entered College Football Week 8 as the only team to meet those criteria.
That all came to a crashing end in Eugene. An imperious performance from Bo Nix saw the Oregon Ducks hand out a 45-30 beatdown on the Bruins. The much-maligned former Auburn quarterback threw for 283 yards and five touchdowns in a showing that looked as easy as the scoreline suggests. It’s now been 18 years since UCLA last won at Autzen Stadium.
While Oregon won’t go unbeaten through the season, they may still hold a strong claim to a place in the College Football Playoffs following the win over UCLA in College Football Week 8. If they can win the conference title with just their Week 1 loss to a currently undefeated Georgia on their résumé — and get a helping hand from college football chaos in other conferences — there is a slim chance of a final four berth.
There is plenty of opportunity for the aforementioned chaos, as College Football Week 8 demonstrated.
Undefeated Ole Miss headed to Baton Rouge to face a 5-2 LSU team that was embarrassed by Tennessee just two weeks ago. Despite the Rebels opening up a comfortable lead early in the game, the LSU defense shut Lane Kiffin’s team down in the second half to record a 45-20 win and end Ole Miss’ undefeated run.
MORE: Week 8 CFB Team of the Week
An undefeated Power Five champion can be hard to ignore when it comes to the College Football Playoffs, and that’s what we could find ourselves with in the ACC after College Football Week 8. Clemson welcomed fellow undefeated conference challenger Syracuse to Memorial Stadium, where the Orange have come close to a shock win before but never quite managed to get across the line.
So was the case in their Week 8 clash. Despite leading for large swathes of the game, a combination of the Clemson defense and their own lack of discipline cost Syracuse their chance at an upset and their undefeated record. The Tigers recorded 17 unanswered points, including two fourth-quarter touchdowns after switching quarterbacks, to win 27-21 on Saturday afternoon.
Following their win over Syracuse in Week 8, Clemson will advance another week into the season undefeated. They’re the only currently undefeated team with a bye next week. The Tigers will head into November without tasting defeat and face a Notre Dame team that isn’t as strong as the Fighting Irish team that prevailed in South Bend a little over two years ago.
Can any team match 2019 LSU, 2018 Clemson, or 2013 Florida State and win a title without a single loss in the entire season? These are the contenders following all of the college football action in Week 8.
Clemson Tigers
- Record: 8-0
- Last game: 27-21 vs. Syracuse
- Next game: Nov. 5 at Notre Dame
TCU Horned Frogs
- Record: 7-0
- Last game: 38-28 vs. Kansas State
- Next game: Oct. 29 at West Virginia
Michigan Wolverines
- Record: 7-0
- Last game: 41-17 vs. Penn State
- Next game: Oct. 29 vs. Michigan State
Ohio State Buckeyes
- Record: 7-0
- Last game: 54-10 vs. Iowa
- Next game: Oct. 29 at Penn State
Georgia Bulldogs
- Record: 7-0
- Last game: 55-0 vs. Vanderbilt
- Next game: Oct. 29 vs. Florida (at TIAA Bank Field)
Tennessee Volunteers
- Record: 7-0
- Last game: 65-24 vs. UT Martin
- Next game: Oct. 29 vs. Kentucky