Oregon, Ohio State, Texas, Penn State are at the top of the CFP rankings

Oregon remained No. 1 in the second ranking released Tuesday night by the College Football Playoff selection committee.

The Ducks, who beat Maryland 39-18 last week to improve to 10-0, were followed by No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Penn State and No. 5 Indiana.

BYU, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Miami, Alabama, Ole Miss and Georgia round out the committee’s top 12.

Miami’s first loss of the season, 28-23 at Georgia Tech, and Georgia’s second loss, 28-10 at Ole Miss, upset the committee’s rankings. The Hurricanes fell five spots to No. 9, while the Bulldogs fell nine spots to No. 12.

Based on the current rankings, Oregon (Big Ten), Texas (SEC), BYU (Big 12) and Miami (ACC) would be the four highest-rated conference champions and would receive first-round byes in the 12-team playoffs.

Boise State is ranked No. 13 in the committee’s rankings, but the Broncos would enter the 12-team playoffs as the fifth-seeded Mountain West conference champion.

The first round matchups would be as follows: No. 12 Boise State vs. No. 5 Ohio State; No. 11 Ole Miss at No. 6 Penn State, No. 10 Alabama at No. 7 Indiana; and No. 9 Notre Dame at No. 8 Tennessee.

Although Georgia, which has won two of the last three CFP national championships, is ranked No. 12 in the committee’s rankings, the Bulldogs would be the first team to be eliminated from the 12-team playoffs.

SMU is No. 14, followed by Texas A&M, Kansas State, Colorado, Washington State, Louisville and Clemson.

South Carolina, LSU, Missouri, Army and Tulane round out the top 25.

The updated College Football Playoff Top 25 rankings 🏆 pic.twitter.com/ymA9wlI1dB

– ESPN (@espn) November 13, 2024

The Gamecocks and Green Wave debuted in the CFP rankings this season, replacing Iowa State and Pittsburgh, which were ranked 17th and 18th, respectively, last week.

Included in the committee’s rankings were nine SEC teams, four each from the ACC and Big Ten and three from the Big 12.

Georgia, which also lost 41-34 at Alabama on Sept. 28, plays a potential CFP elimination game against Tennessee on Saturday at Sanford Stadium (7:30 p.m. ET/ABC, ESPN+). Georgia is 14-3 after a loss under coach Kirby Smart and is bouncing back from each of its last eight losses. The Bulldogs haven’t lost consecutive regular-season games since 2016, Smart’s first season as coach of his alma mater.

Georgia has defeated Tennessee in seven of its last eight contests, including a 38-10 road win last season.

When asked about the CFP implications of Monday’s game, Smart said his team needs to focus solely on beating the Volunteers.

“I never take those approaches,” Smart said. “I don’t think that’s the right way. I think you’re constantly trying to win the conference and to do that you have to win the home games. You have that.” “Playing well away from home, what we succeeded in and what we didn’t.”

BYU survived a 22-21 upset at Utah last week. With Miami’s loss, the Cougars leapfrogged the Hurricane as the third conference champion. BYU hosts Kansas on Saturday, followed by a road game at Arizona State on Nov. 23 and a home game against Houston next week. According to ESPN Analytics, BYU is the clear favorite (92%) to earn a spot in the Big 12 title game and also to win (40%).

Army would be the second-highest conference winner behind Boise State, one spot ahead of fellow AAC program Tulane. The Black Knights improved to 9-0 with a 14-3 win at North Texas last week. Their best chance to make a statement to the selection committee will be in their next game on Nov. 23 against Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium in New York.

The four first-round games will be played on December 20th and 21st at the home campus of the higher seeds. The four quarterfinal games will be in the VRBO Fiesta Bowl, Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl and Rose Bowl presented by Prudential and Allstate Sugar Bowl on December 31 and January 1.

The two semifinal games will take place on January 9th and 10th at the Capital One Orange Bowl and the Goodyear Cotton Bowl.

The CFP National Championship presented by AT&T is scheduled for January 20 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.