The College Football Playoff committee released its second set of weekly rankings on Tuesday night, and the results have fueled fresh debate about how teams from the SEC, Big Ten and Big 12 are being evaluated with three weeks left in the regular season.
Georgia moved into the No. 1 spot after Miami, the previous top-ranked team, suffered its first loss of the season and fell to No. 7. Utah, which beat a top-10 BYU team at home, also had a case for the top spot but landed at No. 2.
The SEC now has five teams in the top 12: No. 1 Georgia, No. 3 Alabama, No. 6 Texas, No. 8 Tennessee and No. 11 Kentucky. That depth has raised questions about how the committee would handle a team like Kentucky if the Wildcats take another loss, given concerns about margin of defeat and conference competition.
One lingering question was whether Tennessee, which beat Alabama by 16 points last month, would be ranked ahead of the Crimson Tide. The committee kept Alabama ahead at No. 3, with Tennessee at No. 8. CFP committee member Hunter Yurachek explained the reasoning behind that placement.
“Alabama was in that first pool, Tennessee was not in that first pool … If you look at their schedule compared to Alabama’s schedule, the committee feels like Alabama has a stronger schedule,” Yurachek said.
Ole Miss, ranked No. 19 after lopsided losses to Georgia and Florida and a close loss to Texas, has wins over two top-25 opponents but appears to be all but eliminated from playoff contention. The Rebels still have to travel to Oklahoma this weekend before closing out the season against Wofford and Mississippi State.
LSU, now No. 21 after a loss to Alabama, would need to beat Texas, Tennessee and Arkansas to close out the season to keep any realistic playoff hope alive, which would mean wins over two teams that should finish in the top 10.
Big Ten Teams Face Pressure
The Big Ten’s playoff picture grew murkier after Ohio State, now ranked No. 20, lost to Oregon, which moved up to No. 16. That loss is considered a near-elimination blow for the Buckeyes.
Indiana, ranked No. 9 this week, dropped from fourth to ninth despite being on a bye week, because several Big Ten teams the Hoosiers had already beaten lost their games over the weekend. Yurachek addressed the drop.
“Indiana was probably victim of having a bye-week at the wrong time … Every team that they had played within the Big Ten lost,” Yurachek said.
No. 4 UCLA remains undefeated but carries a weak strength of schedule that could hurt its playoff case if it loses to Illinois on Friday night. UCLA also has a season-closing matchup against USC still to come.
No. 18 USC could shake up the Big Ten picture further with a trip to Bloomington to face No. 9 Indiana this weekend. South Carolina, meanwhile, still hosts No. 1 Georgia, and USC also faces No. 4 UCLA before the regular season ends.
Big 12 Picture Narrows
BYU, ranked No. 10, was seen as a strong playoff candidate two weeks ago after beating then-No. 5 Notre Dame, but a loss on the road to UCF followed by a loss to No. 2 Utah has left the Cougars fighting to stay in contention.
Texas Tech, now No. 12, has emerged as the Big 12’s best positioned team after wins over Arizona and Houston, despite a loss to Cincinnati. The Red Raiders still must face Oklahoma State and Baylor before a potential matchup with Utah in the Big 12 title game. A loss in either remaining regular-season game would likely end their chances of representing the conference in that title game.
Houston, ranked No. 14, could give the Big 12 a path to a second playoff bid, though that would require help from other results around the conference. Three weeks ago, there was a scenario where the Big 12 could have placed three teams in the playoff field; now it could end up a one-bid league if Utah wins out.
Current Projected First-Round Matchups
- No. 12 Boise State vs. No. 5 Notre Dame
- No. 11 Kentucky vs. No. 6 Texas
- No. 10 BYU vs. No. 7 Miami
- No. 9 Indiana vs. No. 8 Tennessee
With three weeks remaining in the regular season, the rankings are likely to keep shifting as conference races play out across the SEC, Big Ten and Big 12.
