The Hotline won’t attempt to project the first playoff rankings, which will be released this afternoon, or Washington State’s position within.

Instead, we’ll use this space to lend advanced context.

The Cougars are likely to fall in the No. 12-16 range (give or take), a less-than-sparking position due to their less-than-sparkling resume and the conference’s decidedly poor performance.

If we use the current AP top-25 as a rough guide for the committee’s internal assessment …

Washington State has a poor resume (Eastern Washington, San Jose State and Wyoming) and just one victory over a ranked team (Utah).

The broader canvass is even worse:

The Pac-12 has multiple-touchdown losses to No. 3 Notre Dame, No. 7 Oklahoma, No. 15 Texas, No. 17 Houston and No. 20 Fresno State.

Put another way:

It’s 0-5 in non-conference games against the current AP poll and has lost ’em all by at least 21 points.

The Pac-12’s best win is Arizona State’s Week Two victory over Michigan State, which is currently unranked and in third place in the Big Ten East.

The combination of their non-conference schedule and the Pac-12’s non-conference results could very well undermine the Cougars’ position — not only today but throughout November (if they continue to win).

It’s not like they have a bevy of ranked opponents awaiting in the stretch run.

For perspective on what we’re likely to see from WSU’s this afternoon (4 p.m. release), the Hotline examined the initial poll position of the 16 playoff teams:

No. 1: Clemson ’15, Alabama ’16 and Georgia ’17

No. 2: Florida State ’14, Clemson ’16 and Alabama ’17

No. 3: None

No. 4: Alabama ’15, Clemson ’17

No. 5: Oregon ’14, Washington ’16 and Oklahoma ’17

No. 6: Alabama ’14 and Ohio State ’16

No. 7: Michigan State ’15

No. 8: None

No. 9: None

No. 10: None

No. 11: None

No. 12: None

No. 13: None

No. 14: None

No. 15: Oklahoma ’15

No. 16: Ohio State ’14

Based on precedent, a position in the 12-16 range wouldn’t necessarily doom the Cougars. But it’s worth noting that Ohio State and Oklahoma possessed resume-boosting fuel that simply doesn’t exist for WSU:

* Ohio State played a superior non-conference schedule in 2014, had three wins over teams in the committee’s final rankings and blasted No. 11 Wisconsin in the Big Ten title game.

* Oklahoma finished with victories over No. 4 Baylor, No. 11 TCU and No. 9 Oklahoma State (two of the three on the road).

The Cougars could very well end the season as a 12-1 champion with just two wins over ranked teams — both of them against Utah. That’s unlikely to pass the committee’s test, unless there is complete and utter destruction elsewhere.

Oh, and that destruction must include losses by not only Notre Dame but also UCF.

One-loss Washington State won’t be ranked ahead of an undefeated UCF that will have beaten Cincinnati (won at UCLA) and Houston (plastered Arizona).

So whether the Cougars are No. 10, 15 or 20 this afternoon, they’ll need help on an immense scale over the next month.

Rose Bowl: Utah (6-2/4-2)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 3 at Arizona State, Nov. 10 vs. Oregon, Nov. 17 at Colorado

Comment: With Oregon and Colorado struggling, the stretch run has turned manageable. I’ve seen both the Utes and Cougars in person recently and would favor Utah on a neutral field.

Alamo Bowl: Washington State (7-1/4-1)

Remaining games: three home/one road

Key dates: Nov. 3 vs. Cal, Nov. 10 at Colorado, Nov. 23 vs. Washington

Comment: Still to come for Gardner Minshew and Co.: Dates with the two best pass defenses in the conference, Cal and Washington — plus, potentially, another duel with Utah’s secondary.

Holiday Bowl: Washington (6-3/4-2)

Remaining games: two home/one road

Key dates: Nov. 3 vs. Stanford, Nov. 23 at Washington State

Comment: Can’t believe I’m typing this, but right now, with all UW’s issues on offense, I’ll take the Cougars in the Apple Cup.

Redbox Bowl: USC (4-4/3-3)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 3 at Oregon State, Nov. 10 vs. Cal, Nov. 17 at UCLA

Comment: The staff changes announced Monday night — Clay Helton will take over play-calling duties and has fired his offensive line coach — aren’t too-little, too-late. The Trojans are very much in the division race.

Sun Bowl: Oregon (5-3/2-3)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 3 vs. UCLA, Nov. 10 at Utah, Nov. 17 vs. Arizona State

Comment: So often, coaches talk about the need to finish blowout losses with something positive to build upon. So often, star players left in the games for that very purpose end up getting injured.

Las Vegas Bowl: Cal (5-3/2-3)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 3 at Washington State, Nov. 10 at USC, Nov. 17 vs. Stanford

Comment: It’s as easy to envision the Bears winning three of their last four — they also host Colorado — as losing three of the four. Which makes me think 2-2 is the best bet.

Cheez-It Bowl: Stanford (5-3/3-2)

Remaining games: one home/three road

Key dates: Nov. 3 at Washington, Nov. 17 at Cal, Nov. 24 at UCLA

Comment: As we do each week, quickie explainer: The Alamo, Holiday and Redbox can pass over one team in favor of another if there’s no more than a one-game difference in conference record. But the Sun, Las Vegas and Cheez-It are bound by order-of-finish.

At-large: Arizona State (4-4/2-3)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 3 vs. Utah, Nov. 10 vs. UCLA, Nov. 24 at Arizona

Comment: Because of the selection process noted above, the Sun Devils probably need two more wins to be in position for the Cheez-It. At 3-6, they would likely end up in Shreveport, Nassau or Vladivostok.

Not eligible: Arizona (4-5/3-3)

Remaining games: two home/one road

Key dates: Nov. 2 vs. Colorado, Nov. 17 at Washington State, Nov. 24 vs. Arizona State

Comment: Current Hotline projection has a bowl berth on the line for both teams in the Territorial Cup … and the Sun Devils winning. (Because the coin came up heads.) Related Articles Power ratings: Washington State’s remarkable success, explained (by Mike Leach himself)

Hotline newsletter: Kickoff info for the stretch run, Petersen’s missing ‘magic’, Oregon’s ‘frumpy’ attack and USC’s ‘faded brand’

Hotline newsletter: When assistants talk to the media, it doesn’t just benefit the media (the Danny Gonzales episode)

Not eligible: Colorado (5-3/2-3)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 2 at Arizona, Nov. 10 vs. Washington State, Nov. 17 vs. Utah

Comment: Major revision to CU’s outlook after the meltdown against Oregon State: Need to see the Buffaloes regroup and win No. 6 before slotting them into the postseason. Everything could be at stake for CU in the finale at Cal.

Not eligible: Oregon State (2-6/1-4)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 3 vs. USC, Nov. 10 at Stanford, Nov. 17 at Washington, Nov. 23 vs. Oregon

Comment: What kind of preseason odds could you have gotten that none of OSU’s final four opponents would be ranked when November began.

Not eligible: UCLA (2-6/2-3)

Remaining games: two home/two road

Key dates: Nov. 3 at Oregon, Nov. 10 at Arizona State, Nov. 17 vs. USC

Comment: For UCLA (and perhaps others), the new Pac-12 rule banning five-win teams from playing in bowl games — if there are slot available — could become relevant.

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