There is one week left in college football’s regular season, and it could determine the playoff fate of several teams, including the Hurricanes.

Miami moved up one spot to No. 12 in this week’s playoff rankings, inching slightly closer to a playoff berth. Unfortunately for UM, which is likely going to need an at-large berth to make the playoffs, the likely ACC champions and the Group of 5 champion are ranked below UM, meaning Miami likely needs to be ranked in the top 10 to make the playoff field.

Here is how UM can get in:

1. Beat Pittsburgh

This is obvious. It was true last week and it is still true this week. Miami needs to win its upcoming road game against Pittsburgh, and it likely needs to do so convincingly.

Pitt, ranked No. 22 this week, would be the best win over a team ranked at the time for Miami since it beat FSU in early October. The Panthers are also a common opponent with No. 9 Notre Dame, so a showing that is equal or better to the Fighting Irish’s 37-15 win over Pitt (whose coach, Pat Narduzzi, said before playing Notre Dame that he would “gladly get beat 103 or 110-10 in that game … as long as we win the next two after that.”) would look good to the selection committee, which does take common opponents and margin of victory into account.

2. Ideally, win the ACC title game

The Hurricanes’ chances to make the ACC title game are slim, but still possible.

Several things need to happen for Miami to play in Charlotte, and every ACC game can be relevant. The Hurricanes need either No. 18 Virginia or No. 21 SMU to lose this week. If that happens, Miami can make the conference title game if (per the ACC):

— Win + UVA loss + DUKE loss + SMU win OR

— Win + SMU loss + DUKE loss + UVA loss + NCSU win OR

— Win + SMU loss + DUKE loss + UVA loss + UNC win + SYR win OR

— Win + SMU loss + DUKE loss + UVA loss + UNC win + BC win + Finish higher than GT & SMU in SportSource Analytics ranking OR

— Win + SMU loss + DUKE loss + UVA win + NCSU win + SYR win OR

— Win + SMU loss + DUKE loss + UVA win + NCSU win + BC win + Finish higher than GT & SMU in SportSource Analytics ranking OR

— Win + SMU loss + DUKE win + UVA loss + NCSU win OR

— Win + SMU win + DUKE win + UVA loss + NCSU win + Finish higher than DUKE in SportSource Analytics ranking

Here are the current betting lines for each ACC game:

— Virginia is a 9.5-point favorite over Virginia Tech.

— SMU is a 13.5-point favorite over Cal

— Duke is a 1.5-point favorite over Wake Forest

— N.C. State is a 7.5-point favorite over North Carolina

— Boston College is a 2.5-point favorite over Syracuse

3. The at-large scenario

If the Hurricanes do not make the ACC title game — the most likely scenario — they need to get into the top 10 and aim to secure an at-large bid. To do that, Miami likely needs teams above it to lose.

If the top five teams in the rankings — Ohio State, Indiana, Texas A&M, Georgia and Texas Tech — lose this week or in their conference title games, they are unlikely to drop out of the rankings and affect Miami.

If No. 6 Oregon were to lose to unranked rival Washington, the Ducks could fall into UM’s range and perhaps clear a spot for UM to move up. If No. 7 Ole Miss loses to unranked rival Mississippi State, it could also fall — especially if coach Lane Kiffin departs for the open job at LSU or Florida.

Ideally for the Hurricanes, multiple teams between No. 8 and No. 11 would have to lose this week. No. 8 Oklahoma hosts LSU as a 10.5-point favorite. No. 9 Notre Dame is a 32.5-point favorite at Stanford, but it’s a late-night game on the road on the West Coast. Notre Dame will still almost certainly win this game, but it’s an interesting situation.

No. 10 Alabama has a huge rivalry game on the road at Auburn. Although the Crimson Tide have beaten some of the best teams in the nation, they are only 6.5-point favorites against 5-6 Auburn. Weird things can happen at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

No. 11 BYU plays a struggling UCF team as a 17.5-point favorite in Provo, Utah. The Knights struggled to beat Oklahoma State — one of the worst teams in the Power 4 — last week, so an upset on the road seems unlikely. The Cougars are currently in line to make the Big 12 title game, and if they lose big to Texas Tech — which already beat BYU 29-7 earlier this month — the committee could move Miami ahead of BYU.

UM will also have to hope other ranked teams can help it fend off any team trying to sneak past Miami from behind. No. 14 Vanderbilt has a road game at No. 19 Tennessee, and the Volunteers are a 2.5-point favorite. The Commodores likely would not jump UM with a win, as the Hurricanes would also have a win over a ranked team this week (If they beat Pitt). But better safe than sorry — Miami fans should root for Tennessee.

Additionally, there are two potential huge upsets that could cause some chaos. No. 15 Michigan hosts No. 1 Ohio State as 10.5-point underdogs. If the Wolverines were to beat the Buckeyes for the fifth straight season, Ohio State would not tumble out of the bracket, but Michigan could enter it. Similarly, if three-loss No. 16 Texas were to upset No. 3 Texas A&M as 2.5-point home underdogs, the committee may be tempted to put the Longhorns into the field — though that would be a massive jump.

4. The Notre Dame conundrum

The Hurricanes and Fighting Irish have gotten national attention for their CFP projections. Miami beat Notre Dame to open the season, and now the teams have the same record.

The Fighting Irish have been ahead of Miami in every ranking, but the Hurricanes have slowly moved up the board with their wins the past month. Now UM and Notre Dame are separated by three spots — close enough that the committee is directly comparing the two teams (along with Alabama and BYU) and considering UM’s head-to-head win.

The main argument that is boosting Notre Dame is that the Fighting Irish’s losses were against undefeated Texas A&M by one point and at Miami, which are better losses than Miami’s — a one-score home loss to unranked Louisville and an overtime loss to now-ranked SMU. Notre Dame also scores higher in several computer metrics, like SP+ and FPI.

ESPN’s College Football Playoff insider Heather Dinich said after the rankings were released that, “Those people in that room think Notre Dame is better than Miami. Period.” Another national college football writer, Ari Wasserman, said UM is on the verge of suffering the “biggest College Football Playoff committee injustice ever” in his column for On3.

If it comes down to it and there is one at-large spot, would the selection committee decide to put Notre Dame in over Miami despite the teams having the same record, similar resumes and a head-to-head result that went UM’s way? As it stands now, it appears the answer is yes.