(Video by JACOB LUCAS – THE FOOTBALL BEAT)
Apparently, Alabama, love them or hate them, lives in the heads of every single college football fan.
Especially right now, fans of South Carolina and Miami.
The latest College Football Playoff rankings were released live on ESPN earlier tonight, and the Crimson Tide – a team with three losses but with four wins over top-25 teams – were No. 11 in the rankings.
The top four – Oregon, Texas, Penn State and Notre Dame – remained unchanged.
But Alabama’s position seems to grind the gears of thousands of people on social media.
We at TFB sort of think Miami might have a point: they do have 10 wins, but over absolutely no one consequential.
But South Carolina?
Come on.
Six straight wins, hooray. Defeated Clemson, fantastic.
But Gamecocks, you LOST to Alabama. Also lost to Ole Miss. Not sure what your argument is.
These are the penultimate (next-to-last) rankings, complete below with all kinds of information you’ll want to see.
The various championship games across the college football are this weekend. Then the final rankings will be announced on Sunday.
Who will be in the top four and get the first-round byes? Who will host the first-round games (teams ranked five through eight)?
We’ll know on Sunday. Expect there to be outrage, no matter what.
For final standings and a complete list of championship games this Saturday, click our story right here: Championship Weekend schedule, final regular season standings | The Football Beat.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF RANKINGS (Released Dec. 3, 2024)
| 1. OREGON (12-0). Defeated Washington, 49-21. Next: vs. No. 3 Penn State in Big Ten Championship, Saturday, 7 p.m., Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Ind.; CBS. |
| 2. TEXAS (11-1). Defeated Texas A&M, 17-7. Next: vs. No. 5 Georgia in Southeastern Conference Championship, Saturday, 3 p.m., Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Ga.; ABC. |
| 3. PENN STATE (11-1). Defeated Maryland, 44-7. Next: vs. No. 1 Oregon in Big Ten Championship, Saturday, 7 p.m,; Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Ind.; CBS. |
| 4. NOTRE DAME (11-1). Defeated Southern Cal, 49-35. |
| 5. GEORGIA (10-2). Defeated Georgia Tech, 44-42, in OT. Next: vs. No. 2 Texas in Southeastern Conference Championship, Saturday, 3 p.m., Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Ga.; ABC. |
| 6. OHIO STATE (10-2). Lost to Michigan, 13-10. |
| 7. TENNESSEE (10-2). Defeated Vanderbilt, 36-23. |
| 8. SMU (11-1). Defeated Cal, 38-6. Next: vs. No. 17 Clemson in Atlantic Coast Conference Championship, Saturday, 7 p.m.; Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte; ABC. |
| 9. INDIANA (11-1). Defeated Purdue, 66-0. |
| 10. BOISE STATE (11-1). Defeated Oregon State, 34-18. Next: vs. No. 20 UNLV in Mountain West Conference Championship, Saturday, 7 p.m., Albertsons Stadium, Boise, ID; FOX. |
| 11. ALABAMA (9-3). Defeated Auburn, 28-14. |
| 12. MIAMI (10-2). Lost to Syracuse, 42-38. |
| 13. OLE MISS (9-3). Defeated Mississippi State, 26-14. |
| 14. SOUTH CAROLINA (9-3). Defeated Clemson, 17-14. |
| 15. ARIZONA STATE (10-2). Defeated Arizona, 49-7. Next: vs. No. 16 Iowa State in Big 12 Conference Championship, Saturday, 11 a.m. Central, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. |
| 16. IOWA STATE (10-2). Defeated No. 24 Kansas State, 29-21. Next: vs. No. 15 Arizona State in Big 12 Conference Championship, Saturday, 11 a.m. Central, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. |
| 17. CLEMSON (9-3). Lost to No. 14 South Carolina, 17-14. Next: vs. No. 8 SMU in Atlantic Coast Conference Championship, Saturday, 7 p.m., Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte; ABC. |
| 18. BYU (10-2). Defeated Houston, 30-18. |
| 19. MISSOURI (9-3). Defeated Arkansas, 28-21. |
| 20. UNLV (10-2). Defeated Nevada, 38-14. Next: vs. No. 10 Boise State in Mountain West Conference Championship, Saturday, 7 p.m., Albertsons Stadium, Boise, ID; FOX.. |
| 21. ILLINOIS (9-3). Defeated Northwestern, 38-28. |
| 22. SYRACUSE (9-3). Defeated No. 12 Miami, 42-38. |
| 23. COLORADO (9-3). Defeated Oklahoma State, 52-0. |
| 24. ARMY (10-1). Defeated Texas-San Antonio, 29-24. Next: vs. Tulane in American Athletic Conference Championship, Saturday, 7 p.m., Michie Stadium, West Point, NY; ABC. |
| 25. MEMPHIS (10-2). Defeated then-No. 17 Tulane, 34-24. |
