College Football Playoff rankings see minor shake-up near the top
It will be another two weeks before these College Football Playoff rankings get set in stone and actually mean something, but as teams continue to jockey for position over the final few weeks of the season, we can learn a lot about where the playoff committee views some of the traditional powers in the nation.
This past week, there was a bit of a shake-up near the top of the rankings, stemming from an impressive road win for the No. 4 Washington Huskies, who beat the No. 11 Oregon State Beavers in Corvallis on Saturday night. Washington moved ahead of the Florida State Seminoles, who saw their starting QB Jordan Travis suffer a season-ending leg injury that will now put the Seminoles perfect season in danger.
Going forward, we will get some massive games that could upend the rankings. No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Michigan play each other this week, while the Oregon Ducks host the Oregon State Beavers.
There’s a good chance that a week from now, these rankings will look quite a bit different. Here’s how everything stands as we head into the final week of the regular season.
Liberty Flames
Rich Storry-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 49-25 Win vs. UMass
Previous Playoff Ranking: N/A
Clemson Tigers
Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 31-20 Win vs. North Carolina
Previous Playoff Ranking: N/A
Tulane Green Wave
Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 24-8 Win vs. Florida Atlantic
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 24
NC State Wolfpack
Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 35-28 Win vs. West Virginia
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 18
Tennessee Volunteers
Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 38-10 Loss vs. Georgia
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 18
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 43-30 Win vs. Houston
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 23
Kansas State Wildcats
Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 31-27 Win vs. No. 25 Kansas
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 21
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 45-7 Win vs. Wake Forest
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 19
Iowa Hawkeyes
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 15-13 Win vs. Illinois
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 18
Oregon State Beavers
James Snook-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 22-20 Loss vs. No. 5 Washington
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 11
Arizona Wildcats
Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 42-18 Win vs. No. 22 Utah
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 17
LSU Tigers
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 56-14 Win vs. Georgia State
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 15
Oklahoma Sooners
Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 31-24 Win vs. BYU
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 14
Ole Miss Rebels
Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 35-3 Win vs. UL Monroe
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 13
Penn State Nittany Lions
Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 27-6 Win vs. Rutgers
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 12
Louisville Cardinals
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 31-24 Win vs. Miami
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 10
Missouri Tigers
Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 33-31 Win vs. Florida
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 9
Alabama Crimson Tide
Texas Longhorns
Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 26-16 Win vs. Iowa State
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 7
Oregon Ducks
Craig Strobeck-USA TODAY Sports
Week 11 Result: 36-27 Win vs. USC
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 6
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 58-13 Win vs. North Alabama
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 4
James Snook-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 22-20 Win vs. No. 11 Oregon State
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 5
Michael Allio-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 31-24 Win vs. Maryland
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 3
Barbara Perenic/Columbus Dispatch
Week 11 Result: 38-3 Win vs. Michigan State
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 1
Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports
Week 12 Result: 38-10 Win vs. No. 18 Tennessee
Previous Playoff Ranking: No. 1
