12-Team Playoff: Ducks to face rematch vs. Washington in hypothetical expanded CFP
The top 8 teams in the College Football Playoff rankings stayed the same on Tuesday night when they were released, but there was some important movement when it came to the top 4.
The Washington Huskies officially jumped the Florida State Seminoles after their road win over the No. 16 Oregon State Beavers this week, making it so the Huskies should stay in the top 4 — and likely move up to No. 3 this week after Ohio State and Michigan play each other — through to the Pac-12 Championship game, where they will play either the No. 6 Oregon Ducks, or the No. 15 Arizona Wildcats.
In a world where we have a 12-team expanded playoff, something that will come to fruition in 2024, the Ducks and Huskies could have a third rematch, this time taking place in the second round of the playoff.
The 12-team model that was approved last year would include the six highest-ranked conference champions and six at-large teams, with the four highest-ranked conference champions seeded 1 through 4 and receiving first-round byes. The first-round games would be played on campus sites.
So with that system in mind, where would the Oregon Ducks stand after the release of the first official CFP rankings of the year? Take a look:
Note: In these matchups, we advanced Oregon through each game to show what their path would look like, while teams in other matchups were advanced based on who had the higher seed.
First-Round Byes
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Georgia Bulldogs
Florida State Seminoles
Washington Huskies
First Round: No. 8 Alabama vs. No. 9 Missouri
Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports
Winner By Seed: Alabama Crimson Tide
First Round: No. 5 Michigan vs. No. 12 Tulane
Winner By Seed: Michigan Wolverines
First Round: No. 7 Texas vs. No. 10 Louisville
Winner By Seed: Texas Longhorns
First Round: No. 6 Oregon vs. No. 11 Penn State
Winner By Seed: Oregon Ducks
Quarterfinals: No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 7 Texas
Winner by Seed: Ohio State Buckeyes
Quarterfinals: No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 5 Michigan
Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
Winner by Seed: Florida State Seminoles
Quarterfinals: No. 1 Georgia vs. No. 8 Alabama
Winner by Seed: Georgia Bulldogs
Quarterfinals: No. 6 Oregon vs. No. 3 Washington Huskies
Christopher Creveling-USA TODAY Sports
Winner by Exercise Default: Oregon Ducks
Semifinals: No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 6 Oregon
Michael C. Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Winner by Exercise Default: Oregon Ducks
Semifinals: No. 1 Georgia vs. No. 4 Florida State
Winner by Seed: Georgia Bulldogs
National Championship: No. 1 Georgia vs. No. 6 Oregon
(Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks against his former team, the Georgia Bulldogs? This would be a national championship that would be remembered for ages.
