There wasn’t a lot of shock value Tuesday night after the release of the latest College Football Playoff rankings.
Oregon, the nation’s only unbeaten, remained No. 1, and the top four followed suit, with Ohio State having dispatched of previously-undefeated Indiana checking in at No. 2; Texas, who soundly beat Kentucky in Austin, at No. 3; and Penn State, who looked less than great (an understatement) in falling behind in Minnesota, but surviving by one point.
Notre Dame moved up a spot to No. 5 with its win at Yankee Stadium over Army, and Miami, with just one loss, is ranked sixth.
The shakeup began there, after previous top-10 team Alabama lost in ugly fashion at Oklahoma on Saturday. The Crimson Tide (8-3) fell six spots, but to 13, meaning they still have an outside shot of getting into the College Football Playoff. It would likely take a very convincing win at home over archrival Auburn on Saturday and a good deal of help, meaning two or three teams above them would need to lose.
That’s possible, with Texas playing at Texas A&M, Notre Dame facing rival Southern Cal, and other spots; now, likely, that remains another story.
Rounding out the top 10: Georgia is up to No. 7 and has clinched a spot in the SEC Championship Game, and awaits an opponent. Tennessee is No. 8, and likely wouldn’t want a rematch with Georgia – besides, if the Vols can go to the playoff without having to play a risky SEC title game, why wouldn’t they root for that?
SMU, in its continued return from the college football historical graveyard, is 10-1 now and has clinched a spot in the ACC Championship Game. They’re at No. 9.
Indiana fell five spots to No. 10 after its somewhat-embarrassing loss at Ohio State a week ago.
See the remainder of the poll below.
Members of the CFP committee completing these rankings:
- Former University of Nevada coach Chris Ault, who spent 28 years there over three terms.
- U.S. Naval Academy Athletic Director Chet Gladchuk, in his current role for 22 years and also a former AD at the University of Houston and his alma mater, Boston College.
- Jim Grobe, the 40-year coaching veteran who served stints at Ohio, Wake Forest and Baylor.
- Michigan Athletic Director and former player Warde Manuel.
- Former All-American offensive lineman Randall McDaniel, of Arizona State and the Minnesota Vikings, and now a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
- Gary Pinkel, a former head coach at both Toledo and Missouri.
- Mack Rhoades, the Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics at Baylor.
- Former Oregon State and Nebraska head coach Mike Riley.
- Miami University Athletic Director David Sayler.
- Former Nebraska All-American offensive lineman, College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame member Will Shields, longtime standout with the Kansas City Chiefs who didn’t miss a game in 14 years.
- Former USA Today national college football writer and former Football Writers Association of America President Kelly Whiteside.
- Virginia Athletic Director Carla Williams.
- Arkansas Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek.
The CFP poll is released each week on Tuesday evening, on a live TV program that normally airs on ESPN.
This is the first season that there will be a 12-team playoff, featuring five conference champions and seven at-large bids. The top four conference champions with the best records receive a first-round bye, while the other teams meet the first week (Dec. 20-21).
Currently, the first-round byes would go to Oregon (Big Ten), Texas (SEC), Miami (ACC) and to Boise State (Mountain West). The quarterfinals are Dec. 31-Jan. 1, the semifinals (final four) will be Jan. 9-10, and the championship game is set for Monday, Jan. 20, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Here are the most recent CFP rankings.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF RANKINGS (Nov. 26, 2024; all times Central Standard time)
| 1. OREGON (11-0); open last week, hosts Washington Saturday, 6:30 p.m., NBC |
| 2. OHIO STATE (10-1); defeated No. 5 Indiana, 38-15, last week; hosts Michigan Saturday, 11 a.m., FOX. |
| 3. TEXAS (10-1); defeated Kentucky, 31-14, last week; visits No. 20 Texas A&M Saturday, 6:30 p.m., ABC. |
| 4. PENN STATE (10-1); defeated Minnesota, 26-25, lst week; hosts Maryland Saturday, 2:30 p.m., Big Ten |
| 5. NOTRE DAME (10-1); defeated No. 19 Army, 49-14, last week; visits USC Saturday, 2:30 p.m., CBS |
| 6. MIAMI (10-1); defeated Wake Forest, 42-14, last week; visits Syracuse Saturday, 2:30 p.m., ESPN |
| 7. GEORGIA (9-2); defeated Massachusetts, 59-21, last week; hosts Georgia Tech Friday, 6:30 p.m., ABC. |
| 8. TENNESSEE (9-2); defeated UTEP, 56-0, last week; visits Vanderbilt Saturday, 11 a.m., ABC. |
| 9. SMU (10-1); defeated Virginia, 33-7, last week; hosts Cal Saturday, 2:30 p.m., ESPN2 |
| 10. INDIANA (10-1); lost at No. 2 Ohio State, 38-15, last week; hosts Purdue Saturday, 6 p.m., FS1. |
| 11. BOISE STATE (10-1); beat Wyoming, 17-13, last week; hosts Oregon State Friday, 11 a.m., FOX. |
| 12. CLEMSON (9-2); beat The Citadel, 51-14, last week; hosts No. 15 S. Carolina Saturday, 11 a.m., ESPN. |
| 13. ALABAMA (8-3); lost at Oklahoma, 24-3, last week; hosts Auburn Saturday, 2:30 p.m., ABC |
| 14. OLE MISS (8-3); lost at Florida, 24-17, last week; hosts Mississippi State Friday, 2:30 p.m., ABC. |
| 15. SOUTH CAROLINA (8-3); defeated Wofford, 56-12, last week; visits No. 12 Clemson on Saturday. |
| 16. ARIZONA STATE (9-2); defeated No. 14 BYU, 28-23, last week; visits Arizona Saturday, 2:30 p.m., FOX |
| 17. TULANE (9-2); open last week; hosts Memphis on Thursday, 6:30 p.m., ESPN. |
| 18. IOWA STATE (9-2); defeated Utah, 31-28, last week; hosts No. 24 K-State Saturday, 6:30 p.m., FOX |
| 19. BYU (9-2); lost to No. 21 Arizona State, 28-23, last week; hosts Houston Saturday, 9:15 p.m., ESPN. |
| 20. TEXAS A&M (8-3); lost at Auburn, 43-41, last week; hosts No. 3 Texas on Saturday. |
| 21. MISSOURI (8-3); defeated MSU, 39-20, last week; hosts Arkansas Saturday, 2:30 p.m., SEC Network |
| 22. UNLV (9-2); defeated San Jose State, 27-16, last week; hosts Nevada Saturday, 7 p.m., CBS Sports N. |
| 23. ILLINOIS (8-3); defeated Rutgers, 38-31, last week; visits Northwestern Saturday, 11 a.m., Big Ten |
| 24. KANSAS STATE (8-3); defeated Cincinnati, 41-15, last week; visits No. 18 Iowa State on Saturday. |
| 25. COLORADO (8-3); lost at Kansas, 37-21, last week; hosts Oklahoma State Friday, 11 a.m., ABC. |
