Separating the CFP contenders from the pretenders

After rolling over Stanford, Jake Browning and Washington are definitely in the College Football Playoff conversation, but they have little margin for error thanks to their weak nonconference schedule.Week 5 was revealing.

Clemson now stands alone in the ACC. With its game-winning field goal, North Carolina changed the season for Florida State. With its improbable Hail Mary touchdown, Tennessee officially solidified its spot as the top team in the SEC East. And Washington, which bullied Stanford for four quarters, made an in-your-face playoff statement that was impossible to ignore.

We now have a much better idea of who to take seriously in the College Football Playoff race -- and who has…