Pandemonium reigned Saturday in college football.

Even when some of the favorites won, it wasn't without theater. The day featured a smattering of all-important showdowns with College Football Playoff implications dotting the spectrum.

The playoff picture is still far from cleared, and some outcomes made things more murky. After Ohio State's 38-15 annihilation of Indiana to hand a Hoosiers team with a weak schedule its first loss of the season, did it drop Curt Cignetti's team out of the 12-team field?

No. 4 Penn State survived in a one-point win at Minnesota. Texas didn't look great but got by Kentucky. Notre Dame rolled. Boise State sweated out a road win at lowly Wyoming.

But Ole Miss, Alabama and Texas A&M crippled their playoff chances, opening things up for pretty much all the fringe teams.

Jaxson Dart's back-to-back drive-ending interceptions secured a 24-17 upset win for Florida to push the Rebels out of the picture. Alabama couldn't do anything on the road against Oklahoma's defense as Jalen Milroe unraveled. The Aggies shockingly lost in four overtimes at Auburn.

We tried to make sense of it all.

This week's panel included David Kenyon, Morgan Moriarty, Adam Kramer and Brad Shepard. A first-place vote was worth 25 points, a second-place vote worth 24 points and so on.

Top 25

B/R Top 25

1. Oregon
2. Ohio State
3. Texas
4. Penn State
5. Notre Dame
6. Georgia
7. Indiana
8. Miami
9. SMU
10. Tennessee
11. Boise State
12. Clemson
13. Arizona State
14. Alabama
15. Ole Miss
16. Iowa State
17. South Carolina
18. Colorado
19. Tulane
20. BYU
21. Texas A&M
22. UNLV
23. Army
24. Illinois
T-25. Memphis
T-25. Missouri

Who's Hot: Ohio State in a Top-Five Battle

In a week where some contenders were feasting on late-season cupcakes, Ohio State got some late-season style points in a top-five matchup.

They seriously damaged No. 5 Indiana's College Football Playoff chances in the process.

Most of the week, pundits talked about what an opportunity this was for the undefeated Hoosiers to cement their status on the national stage after playing a schedule devoid of quality opponents. Instead, the Buckeyes flexed their blue-blood status.

IU is without question a nice, feel-good story this season, but Ohio State is a Big Ten beast, and the Buckeyes looked playoff-primed Saturday in a 38-15 win. A late fourth-quarter punch-in saved the Hoosiers some face, but this one was ugly.

Ohio State's defense allowed just 151 total yards, and two special teams miscues assisted the onslaught. First, IU punter James Evans fumbled the snap, leading to a 7-yard drive capped by a 4-yard score to put the Buckeyes up 14-7. Then, a 79-yard Caleb Downs punt return for a score extended the lead.

The second half was more of the same as Ohio State reeled off 31 unanswered points.

"In life, all good things come to an end," Indiana coach Curt Cignetti told the Associated Press.

Whether or not this marked the culmination of IU's good-vibes story, Ohio State's is just beginning with Michigan waiting next week.

Who's Not: Ole Miss'ing out on the Playoffs

On a day when there was so much college football chaos, Ole Miss choking on the road in The Swamp stood out.

Lane Kiffin's rebuilt Rebels out-flexed Georgia a couple of weeks ago, looking like one of the nation's scariest groups. Out of a horde of two-loss SEC teams, Ole Miss was settled into the No. 10 spot in the College Football Playoff rankings, comfortably controlling their destiny as an at-large bid.

Everything came crashing down in a Florida frenzy.

Nearly a two-touchdown favorite against the 5-5 Gators, Ole Miss fell flat. Kiffin gambled too much on fourth down rather than taking sure-fire points, and Florida came up huge time and time again on defense.

Whether it was drive-stopping short-yardage plays or intercepting Jaxson Dart, Florida had answers. The Gators forced three turnovers, stopped the Rebels three times in the red zone and held them to 3-of-14 on third down.

The Ole Miss signal-caller entered the game a fringe Heisman Trophy candidate, but struggled with his decision-making late. He finished 24-of-41 for 323 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions—both coming on the final two drives.

First, Bryce Thornton picked Dart in the end zone. Then, after what was called an interception on the field on Ole Miss' attempt at a final, game-tying drive was overturned, Dart threw another one to Thornton on the 22-yard line to end the threat.

It also ended the Rebels' playoff hopes.

What's Next?

Say whatever you want about the College Football Playoff, but the new 12-team format has essentially made every morsel of the season matter.

It's going to be much the same next week in an end-of-the-season Thanksgiving feast that has so many ramifications.

There are SEC championship game and playoff ramifications on the line when Texas travels to College Station to renew its hated rivalry with the Aggies. Coach Mike Elko's team has shown flashes of defensive brilliance at times this year, but the Longhorns will present a different test.

Other big games loom, too. Notre Dame travels to USC with a playoff berth on the line. Georgia hosting Georgia Tech isn't a gimme depending on which Bulldogs team shows up, though playing in Athens is a boost.

Tennessee may have an inside track to get into the final 12 with Ole Miss' loss, but a trip to Nashville to take on Vanderbilt is a minefield. Ask Alabama (which lost) and Texas (which won by seven) about going to West End.

The Iron Bowl (Auburn at Alabama) and The Game (Ohio State at Michigan) look lopsided on paper, but in rivalries that deep and storied, you can never count either out. Same goes for Arizona State-Arizona.

Don't forget about a sneaky-tough matchup for Boise State hosting Oregon State in a game that could have ramifications on the Broncos getting in, and Miami still has to get past Syracuse.

There is a lot to love about the final weekend of the regular season, and Thanksgiving week means we get a big slate of Friday games, too.

Loosen the belt buckle and buckle up.