Oklahoma under the most pressure in Week 12 after second CFP rankings

Plenty of teams are under pressure to keep their College Football Playoff dreams alive in Week 12, but none like the Oklahoma Sooners.

The Sooners came in at No. 11 in the second CFP rankings on Tuesday as the first team left out of the 12-team field, and the committee has made it clear OU still needs one more statement win before getting moved up as a legit playoff contender. 

Sooners have everything to lose with CFP chances hanging by a thread

While other teams are also on the bubble of making the CFP, including Texas and BYU, none are in more danger of getting popped than the Sooners this weekend. 

OU travels to No. 4 Alabama on Saturday. A win would propel the Sooners in the next CFP rankings and all but solidify their spot in the playoff with a pair of games against Missouri and LSU afterward. A loss, though, would basically dash all hopes for the Sooners to make the CFP this season after suffering a third loss. 

FanSided's Cody Williams agreed when he listed OU as one of his teams under the most pressure after the second CFP rankings were revealed, along with Texas, Oregon, Georgia Tech and South Florida.

"Much like the rival Longhorns, the Sooners can't afford to lose the lesser games on their schedule against QB-injury riddled Mizzou and ailing LSU. At the same time, Oklahoma might also face the most immediate pressure because of that with their looming Week 12 showdown with No. 4-ranked Alabama," Williams wrote. "That could be a win-and-in scenario for Brent Venables' team, again assuming they take care of business in the final two weeks of the regular season.

"A loss against Bama, however, all but ends the CFP hopes for the Sooners. This is the type of put-up-or-shut-up moment for Oklahoma that fans dream about."

The difference between the Sooners and the other teams fighting for a playoff is that not only do they have the biggest challenge this weekend, but it's also OU's last shot to impress. No. 10 Texas travels to No. 5 Georgia for a daunting task on Saturday, and although a third loss would be detrimental for the Longhorns, they would still be alive, because a win over No. 3 Texas A&M in a few weeks could boost Texas in, even with three losses. Texas also holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Sooners so could even get in with three losses over a two-loss OU.

The likes of Oregon, Georgia Tech and South Florida just flat out don't play the same level of competition as the Sooners. There's not a ranked team left on South Florida's schedule to stop it. Oregon has one in No. 17 USC at home.

Georgia Tech has two top-25 teams ahead, but No. 22 Pitt won't be anymore if it loses to Notre Dame on Saturday, and a loss to No. 5 Georgia to end the regular season would do absolutely nothing to the Yellow Jackets' playoff chances since they just need to win a weak ACC to get in over a team like OU.

There is no margin of error left in the most difficult of circumstances. The Sooners' playoff has actually already started.