This month, there was arguably no bigger win than Alabama over Georgia on Saturday night, and no loss that has loomed larger than Notre Dame's home defeat to unranked Northern Illinois.
So how much will September losses by the Bulldogs and Irish matter in the end?
Even in the new era of the 12-team College Football Playoff, what happens in September will continue to influence the 13-member selection committee through Selection Day -- for better or for worse.
With games in the month of September officially over, here's a look at five playoff lessons learned after five weeks of results, followed by a projection of the selection committee's top 12 if the ranking were released today. Remember, this is NOT a projection of what it will look like on Selection Day. Rather, it's a snapshot of who's in the driver's seat now, based on what they have done to this point.
The 12-team playoff seeding will look different from this ranking as well. The top four highest-ranked conference champions receive byes, and the top five conference champions receive entry into the field.