There’s not likely to be a change at the very top of the College Football Playoff rankings this week, but the race is on for at-large positions and the ACC and Group of Five allocated spots in the 12-team field
The top three-ranked teams — undefeated Ohio State, Indiana and Texas A&M — all won their games and figure to maintain the top three spots.
The shuffling begins after that, with No. 4 Alabama’s 23-21 loss at home to No. 11 Oklahoma leaving the door open for No. 5 Georgia to move up a spot after the Bulldogs dominated No. 10 Texas, 35-10.
The Sooners’ 23-21 win over the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, should move Oklahoma up into the top 10 of the CFP rankings, which looks to be the cutoff for at-large teams. The ACC champ and highest-ranked Group of Five conference champ — both guaranteed spots in the field — figure to get the final two slots with No. 11 and No. 12 seeds.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey expressed confidence his league’s quality depth would play out with multiple CFP field bids.
“We want to earn our opportunities,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said in a gathering with media in the Sanford Stadium press box prior to the Texas-Georgia game Saturday night in Athens.
“I think we’ve established ourselves in both nonconference play and what happens week to week on the football field in a league with great strength.”
The ACC bid remains very much up for grabs, with four teams with one conference loss vying for a spot in the league’s championship game:
• No. 16 Georgia Tech (9-1, 6-1 ACC)
• No. 19 Virginia (9-2, 6-1)
• No. 22 Pitt (7-3, 5-1)
• SMU (7-3, 5-1).
Miami, the ACC’s highest-ranked team in the CFP standings last week at No. 15, scored a dominant 41-7 win over North Carolina State to maintain its slim playoff hopes.
The Group of Five race is much more complex, as the CFP selection committee looks to pick the best champion from the five non-Power 4 conferences.
American Conference member South Florida was the highest-ranked Group of Five team but the Bulls fell 41-38 on the road at Navy and appear to be on the outside of the CFP race looking in with three losses.
Sun Belt leader James Madison, at 9-1, could find itself in what amounts to a beauty contest with AAC leaders North Texas (9-1), Tulane (8-2) and Navy (8-2).
Here’s a look at how the seedings and projected matchups could look when the CFP rankings are released Tuesday night:
First-round byes
- No. 1 Ohio State
- No. 2 Indiana
- No. 3 Texas A&M
- No. 4 Georgia
First-round games
- No. 5 Texas Tech vs. No. 12 James Madison
- No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 11 Georgia Tech
- No. 7 Oregon vs. No. 10 Alabama
- No. 8 Notre Dame vs. No. 9 Oklahoma
How the CFP Top 25 fared
(with notable other results below)
- Ohio State (10-0) — Defeated UCLA 48-10
- Indiana (11-0) — Defeated Wisconsin 31-7
- Texas A&M (10-0) — Defeated South Carolina 31-30
- Alabama (8-2) — Lost to No. 11 Oklahoma 23-21
- Georgia (9-1) — Defeated No. 10 Texas 35-10
- Texas Tech (10-1) — Defeated UCF 48-9
- Ole Miss (10-1) — Defeated Florida 34-24
- Oregon (9-1) — Defeated Minnesota 42-13
- Notre Dame (8-2) — Won at Pitt 37-15
- Texas (7-3) — Lost at No. 5 Georgia 35-10
- Oklahoma (8-2) — Won at No. 4 Alabama 23-21
- BYU (9-1) — Defeated TCU 44-13
- Utah (8-2) — Won at Baylor 55-28
- Vanderbilt (8-2) — Did not play
- Miami (8-2) — Defeated North Carolina State 41-7
- Georgia Tech (9-1) — Won at Boston College 36-34
- USC (8-2) — Defeated No. 21 Iowa 26-21
- Michigan (8-2) — Won at Northwestern 24-22
- Virginia (9-2) — Won at Duke 34-17
- Louisville (7-3) — Lost 20-19 to Clemson
- Iowa (6-4) — Lost at No. 17 USC 26-21
- Pitt (7-3) — Lost to No. 9 Notre Dame 37-15
- Tennessee (7-3) — Defeated New Mexico State 42-9
- South Florida (7-3) — Lost at Navy 41-38
- Cincinnati (7-3) — Lost to Arizona 30-24
Others to note
- AP poll No. 24 James Madison (9-1) — Defeated Appalachian State 58-10
- AP poll No. 26 Tulane (8-2) — Defeated Florida Atlantic 35-24
- AP poll No. 28 North Texas (9-1) — Defeated UAB 53-24
- Navy (8-2) — Defeated No. 24 South Florida 41-38
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