Alabama’s loss to LSU cost it all of two spots in the rankings.
The latest College Football Playoff Selection Committee rankings, released Tuesday night, have UA ranked No. 5, behind No. 1 LSU, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Clemson and No. 4 Georgia. Oregon was No. 6 behind UA.
“Georgia, with wins against both Florida and Notre Dame, puts them at No. 4 in the rankings this week,” CFP Selection Committee chair Rob Mullens said. Mullens is Oregon’s Director of Athletics. “The committee spent a lot of time comparing Georgia and Alabama; in the end, Georgia’s two wins over ranked teams made the difference. Alabama is a strong team, but the committee gave Georgia the edge.”
LSU moved up from No. 2 to No. 1 with the 46-41 win over Alabama. Mullens said on ESPN LSU is now the only team in the nation with four top 20 wins after the win in Tuscaloosa.
The topic of game control, a phrase used by former CFP Selection Committee chair Jeff Long, has come up with regards to losses such as UA’s to LSU and Oklahoma’s to Kansas State: losses that looked one-sided during the game but resulted in a close final score. Mullens said final score is not a factor in their decision-making process because the committee watches the games and makes its judgements from that.
The rankings are subject to significant change after this week’s results, with No. 4 Georgia at No. 12 Auburn and No. 10 Oklahoma at No. 13 Baylor.
FULL RANKINGS
- LSU
- Ohio State
- Clemson
- Georgia
- Alabama
- Oregon
- Utah
- Minnesota
- Penn State
- Oklahoma
- Florida
- Auburn
- Baylor
- Wisconsin
- Michigan
- Notre Dame
- Cincinnati
- Memphis
- Texas
- Iowa
- Boise State
- Oklahoma State
- Navy
- Kansas State
- Appalachian State
