There shouldn’t be too much drama ahead of the College Football Playoff rankings reveal on Sunday.
Conference championship Saturday felt set up for chaos after Oklahoma State’s Dezmon Jackson came up inches short of a Big 12-winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter of the Big 12 title game. The Cowboys entered the weekend at No. 5 in the CFP rankings and were poised to move into the top four with a win and a Georgia win over Alabama.
Neither of those wins happened. Baylor ran out the clock after Jackson was stopped short for a 21-16 win and Alabama beat up Georgia in the SEC title game.
That Alabama win effectively stole a playoff spot from the rest of the field. With Georgia likely in the playoff no matter what happened on Saturday, Alabama needed to win as a 6.5-point underdog to get into the playoff. A loss would have dropped the Tide to 11-2 and out of the top four.
Remember, no two-loss team has ever made the playoff. And that’s not happening this year. Alabama is 12-1. So is Georgia. So is Michigan. Cincinnati is 13-0. The playoff field seems pretty set. The only drama on Sunday should be what order those teams are in.
Here’s our best guess at what the committee’s top 10 will look like on Sunday along with our final New Year’s Six bowl projections below. Utah is locked in the Rose Bowl after winning the Pac-12 title while Pitt is heading to the Peach Bowl as the ACC champion.
10. Michigan State (10-2)
The Spartans should move up a spot from No. 11 after Oregon was dominated by Utah on Friday night in the Pac-12 title game. Michigan State should be the third Big Ten team in a New Year’s Six bowl and will either head to Atlanta or Arizona.
9. Ole Miss (10-2)
The Rebels announced a contract extension for coach Lane Kiffin on Saturday night shortly after the SEC title game. Ole Miss is one of the biggest…
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