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There is no convoluted formula or secret access code into the College Football Playoff. It is, however, an exclusive club -- one that so far has been reserved for the big boys of college football, the conference champions from the Big Ten, Big 12, ACC, Pac-12 and SEC.The only common denominator between the haves and have-nots chasing a spot in the playoff is the one question every team must answer for the selection committee: Who did you beat?Last year, Houston beat Florida State, Louisville and Vanderbilt. Memphis beat Ole Miss. Cincinnati beat Miami. The entire American Athletic Conference went 6-4 against the ACC and won a total of 10 games against Power 5 opponents. It finished with three 10-win teams in Houston, Navy and Temple.New Years Six bowl? Definitely. Top four? Not a chance.I talked to the committee and I talked to the chair, said American Conference commissioner Mike Aresco. We were able to talk to them at the College Football Playoff, and I said, I just think there might be this bias toward teams that have always been there, teams in the P5 with the big names, but these teams can play, and Houston couldve been a very worthy playoff team.It still might be.The American raised its profile in the eyes of the committee last year, but in order for the group to even consider a team from the Group of 5 -- comprised of The American, the MAC, the Mountain West, the Sun Belt and C-USA -- it would likely have to be undefeated, including at least one win over a ranked Power 5 opponent, and the entire league would have to have a few top 25 teams like the American did last year.Its not impossible.Its just not probable in this system.I think the landscape needs to be evened out and made fair, said former Oregon offensive coordinator and first-year UCF coach Scott Frost. I think from our perspective, an eight-team playoff would be a lot better. Then you can take the top Group of 5 team and throw them in with the seven best Power 5 teams.I think the number of conference games needs to be standard throughout the leagues, he said. Im coming from the Pac-12, where we had to win nine straight conference games, and whatever nonconference you had, and a playoff if you get there. Wed be playing Arizona State or USC in Week 10, watching the SEC play The Citadel or Georgia Southern. Those kinds of things arent equitable. If were going to get to a point where everything is fair, then they need to even out the scheduling with everybody and give everybody a fair shake.Temple coach Matt Rhule hasnt forgotten what it feels like to be undefeated and left out. He was on the 1994 Penn State team that went undefeated and didnt win the national title.This system? Its sooo much better, he said.That team wouldve killed for this opportunity, he said. I think its a step in the right direction, but I look forward to the day we open it up to eight teams. Im hoping that some day that happens, because I think the teams in this league, if they put them in the playoff, people would be really surprised at what we would do. I think wed have some really great games.There will be several chances to prove it this season.Houston has gotten the bulk of the attention as the Group of 5s best playoff hope, but ESPNs Football Power Index gives Boise State the best chance of any Group of 5 team to win out, at 7.9 percent - the fourth-best chance of any team in the country behind Oklahoma, Florida State and Clemson. FPI projects Houston to win just 8.6 games, but the Cougars will face Oklahoma and Louisville.South Florida also has a monumental opportunity at home when it faces Florida State, but its unlikely the selection committee could ignore a season opener against Towson. Memphis once against faces Ole Miss, Tulsa travels to Ohio State, and SMU has TCU and Baylor. One of the more underrated difficult schedules is ECUs three-game stretch against NC State, South Carolina and Virginia Tech.Lining up against Power 5 opponents is one thing. Winning those games is another.If you become the conference champion in the American conference and you win those games, UConns Bob Diaco said, I dont know how youre not going to be a part of that group of four, I really dont.The highest-ranked champion from the Group of 5 is guaranteed a spot in a New Years Six bowl, which Houston earned last year, when they beat Florida State 38-24 in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. If the Cougars can beat the Sooners in Week 1, they should immediately be taken seriously in the CFP race.If they went undefeated and win those games, Aresco said, I dont know how you keep them out.Maybe you dont.Its going to take perfection, though, to find out.Adidas Falcon Schoenen . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. Adidas Ultra Boost 19 Kopen . The Cincinnati Reds remain perfect with their speedy rookie outfielder in the starting lineup. http://www.nmdtekoop.com/stan-smith-sneakers.html . On Tuesday, Ottawa placed forward Cory Conacher and defenceman Joe Corvo on waivers as trade rumours swirl around the Senators. Adidas Superstar Uitverkoop . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Adidas NMD Goedkoop . -- Peyton Manning will have all of his wide receivers available for the first time in a month when the Denver Broncos begin their playoff run Jan.METAIRIE, La. -- New Orleans Saints center Max Unger finally gets to play against a defense he knows so well in a game that counts.Its just a lot of memories of playing the defense in practice, Unger said when asked what he finds most compelling about the chance to play Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks, the team with which he spent his first six NFL seasons.Unger, who was popular both in the Seahawks locker room and with Seattle fans, concedes that he was caught off guard by the 2015 trade that sent him to New Orleans, along with a first-round draft choice, in exchange for star tight end Jimmy Graham. But if the Unger is motivated personally by the prospect of making the Seahawks pay for uprooting him from a community he liked living in and playing for, hes not letting on about it.Theres a lot of emotions, obviously, that go across when you get traded, Unger said. You kind of have to remove that personal element. ... Im not the first player to ever play against their former team. It happens weekly in this locker room. So its funny to hear the stories and so this will be another one.While the Hawaii native and former second-round draft choice out of Oregon wasnt entirely thrilled by having to leave the West Coast, he was curious about the culture and history of New Orleans and eager to experience something different. He figured hed get a lot out of playing with record-setting quarterback Drew Brees, and he at least knew the Saints really valued him; they must have to trade a star as prolific as Graham for him.After practice Thursday, Unger went so far as to say he couldnt be happier than he is right now as an offensive leader with the Saints, who named him a captain this season.I take a lot of pride in that, Unger said. Its just a testament to doing the right things.When Unger was traded to New Orleans, right tackle Zach Strief reached out almost immediately, inviting Unger to watch a round of New Orleans annual PGA Tour event, the Zurich Classic, in the spring of 2015. Strief said it makes sense that Unger would be appreciated by fans in Seattle -- or anywhere.Fans can see and understand and respect tough guys, juust like he is here.dddddddddddd Hes tough and hes steady and gives you everything you want out of a lineman, Strief said. Hes not a big talker. Hes not someone whos going to ask to have his face put many places, but at the same time I think people very quickly get a feel for the type of person he is by how he plays and the kind of guy he is around the locker room.In New Orleans, anyone who succeeds in protecting Brees is bound to be respected. Unger has fortified the front and center of the pocket, Brees said, and the results are self-evident. Brees led the NFL in passing last season. Through six games this season, he is averaging an NFL-leading 350.2 yards per game, putting him on pace for what would be an NFL single-season record of 5,603 yards passing.Max has been as good as I ever could have imagined, not only just his production, but his leadership ability and his toughness and the presence he brings to the locker room and to that offensive line room and to our team, Brees said.Even though the Seahawks were willing to part with Unger to get an elite pass-catcher like Graham, it is also apparent they miss their former offensive lineman -- and not just because theyve had a little more trouble than usual running the ball and protecting quarterback Russell Wilson.Hes awesome, one of our all-time favorite guys, Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. Its who he is -- his character, his competitiveness, the smarts that he brings just a great team guy.Unger said he still follows how the Seahawks are doing, still has a number of friends on the team and -- with the exception of this week -- still enjoys seeing them succeed.It sounds like the feeling is mutual.He is an incredible leader and he is an incredible ballplayer, Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman said of Unger. He is reliable and he is a fantastic teammate. He is one of the better teammates that you could ask for. I think that everybody was surprised when that trade went down.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '