[OutsiderFan]

If Stanford goes through the Pac-12 season at least 8-1, goes 3-0 OOC while knocking off ND in the process, and wins the Championship game, Stanford will always make the CFP, IMO.

It's a tall order, but if Stanford beats either Oregon or Northwestern in 2015, it is in the 2015 CFP. 

I don't know about 2010.  The committee has yet to put two teams from the same conference in, and I have great doubts the committee is putting two teams from the same division in, because they can always use the head-to-head and conference championship game wins as tie-breakers in their own sort of de-facto informal playoff scenario.

That said, in 2010, I do believe Stanford and Oregon were 2/4 best teams in the country.  And Stanford did have a big lead and suffer a succession of insane bad luck in the Oregon game that year that bothers me to this day.

[OutsiderFan]

If Stanford goes through the Pac-12 season at least 8-1, goes 3-0 OOC while knocking off ND in the process, and wins the Championship game, Stanford will always make the CFP, IMO.

It's a tall order, but if Stanford beats either Oregon or Northwestern in 2015, it is in the 2015 CFP. 

I don't know about 2010.  The committee has yet to put two teams from the same conference in, and I have great doubts the committee is putting two teams from the same division in, because they can always use the head-to-head and conference championship game wins as tie-breakers in their own sort of de-facto informal playoff scenario.

That said, in 2010, I do believe Stanford and Oregon were 2/4 best teams in the country.  And Stanford did have a big lead and suffer a succession of insane bad luck in the Oregon game that year that bothers me to this day.