The College Football Playoff selection committee doesn't officially meet to start deliberating its first of six rankings until Monday, so the only clues to what it might do are found in written protocols and past decisions.
Statement wins always have and always will loom large, as will elite talent and Heisman Trophy-caliber athletes, where games are played and how contests unfold.
Head-to-head results (sometimes), common opponents and FCS opponents also are considered. So are injuries to key players, like Georgia All-American tight end Brock Bowers.
Nowhere in the protocol does it say anything about how to handle allegations of cheating against Michigan. Which is why several former selection committee members have said this current group will probably rank the Wolverines based on how they have played so far — and leave the gossip in the hallway.