Week 10 buzz - LSU-Alabama, Washington slippage, CFP sleepers - ESPN

With the first College Football Playoff rankings out, the postseason picture is a bit clearer, at least for the time being.

Despite its early-season loss to Texas, Alabama is still in the picture, checking in at No. 8, but the Tide have virtually no margin for error. That makes Saturday night's home game against surging LSU critical for Nick Saban and his team.

Washington was the only Power 5 unbeaten left out of the top four, and with its shaky performances the past couple of weeks, it's fair to wonder how long its record will remain unblemished.

Speaking of unbeaten teams dealing with issues, Michigan returns to the field after a bye week with a sign-stealing scandal hanging over its head. Can the Wolverines block out the distractions?

ESPN insiders Heather Dinich and Adam Rittenberg break down these topics and more, including the team outside the CFP top eight that could still make some noise and their upset picks for Week 10.

Jump to a section:
LSU's approach vs. Bama
Jalen Milroe's progression
Next unbeaten to fall
CFP sleepers
Michigan's mindset
Upset picks | Emptying the notebook

Dinich: The same way it did last year — with Jayden Daniels making explosive plays with his legs and his arm in clutch situations.

Remember, Alabama's defense was in his face all game last season, sacking Daniels six times, and he still took off for a 25-yard touchdown run in overtime — and Alabama coach Nick Saban hasn't forgotten it. Saban said that happened because of busts up front in terms of gap control, and he knows his defense can't make similar mistakes again.

«He killed us last year,» Saban said. «Overall, they execute their offense to perfection and it starts with him because he makes the right reads relative to runs and passes and