Georgia Takes Over No. 1 Spot as Notre Dame Upsets Miami in Latest College Football Playoff Rankings

Georgia is the new No. 1 team in the College Football Playoff rankings after the Bulldogs routed Ole Miss 42-7 on the road, while the previous top team, Miami, fell to No. 7 following a one-touchdown home loss to Notre Dame in Week 10.

Notre Dame, which entered the week ranked No. 11, jumped six spots to No. 5 after beating the then-undefeated Hurricanes. Georgia had been ranked No. 2 behind Miami in the initial rankings because of an earlier loss to Auburn, but enters this week at 8-1.

The shift at the top wasn’t the only result likely to draw debate. Alabama moved up two spots to No. 3 with a 7-2 record after a 31-13 win over LSU, landing ahead of UCLA, which is undefeated at 9-0 but sits at No. 4.

Tennessee, also 7-2, came in at No. 8 after beating Kentucky, which the committee ranked No. 11. The matchup raises a familiar question, since Tennessee beat Alabama 26-10 earlier this season but was ranked below the Crimson Tide.

CFP committee chair Hunter Yurachek, athletic director at Arkansas, explained the panel’s reasoning for placing Alabama at No. 3.

“They’re number one in record strength. Number one in their schedule strength,” Yurachek said. “They have four, what we call, quality wins, because we continue to call that the win against Mississippi State earlier in the year when they had Kamario Taylor on their team. They were 4-0. Alabama went there and won that game. So, Alabama, we believe, deserves to be the No. 3 team in the country.”

Asked why Tennessee wasn’t ranked higher despite its win over Alabama, Yurachek pointed to the committee’s grouping process.

“Well, we’ll go back to what you just said about Miami and Notre Dame. Alabama was in that first pool – Tennessee was not in that first pool,” Yurachek said. “Tennessee’s got a couple of quality wins – their win they just had against Kentucky and the win they had against Alabama.”

Texas sits at No. 6, followed by Miami at No. 7 and Tennessee at No. 8. Indiana, idle on a bye week, dropped five spots to No. 9 despite remaining 8-1, with the committee noting its earlier marquee wins no longer look as strong. BYU rounds out the top 10 at No. 10 after a near-upset of No. 2 Utah on the road.

Kentucky (No. 11), Texas Tech (No. 12), Wake Forest (No. 13), Houston (No. 14) and Iowa (No. 15) fill out the next tier. Oregon leaped seven spots to No. 16 after beating Ohio State 41-28, while Ohio State dropped eight spots to No. 20 following back-to-back losses that put the Buckeyes at 6-3. Ole Miss fell nine spots to No. 19 after its blowout loss to Georgia.

Full Rankings

• No. 1: Georgia (8-1)
• No. 2: Utah (9-0)
• No. 3: Alabama (7-2)
• No. 4: UCLA (9-0)
• No. 5: Notre Dame (8-1)
• No. 6: Texas (7-2)
• No. 7: Miami (8-1)
• No. 8: Tennessee (7-2)
• No. 9: Indiana (8-1)
• No. 10: BYU (7-2)
• No. 11: Kentucky (7-2)
• No. 12: Texas Tech (8-1)
• No. 13: Wake Forest (8-1)
• No. 14: Houston (7-2)
• No. 15: Iowa (7-2)
• No. 16: Oregon (6-3)
• No. 17: South Carolina (6-3)
• No. 18: USC (7-2)
• No. 19: Ole Miss (6-3)
• No. 20: Ohio State (6-3)
• No. 21: LSU (6-3)
• No. 22: Missouri (6-3)
• No. 23: Arizona (7-2)
• No. 24: Boise State (8-1)
• No. 25: Oklahoma State (6-3)