This Saturday, however, the Tigers face Florida State, which sits at No. 16 and is the only other ACC member present in the first set of rankings.
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That was easy. This is far more hard.
No. 5 Notre Dame (7-1) and No. 6 Baylor (7-0) landed just outside the top four.
Committee chairman Jeff Long told ESPN that UF and Alabama are closer than their six-spot difference suggests, but the Crimson Tide holds an early edge because it has an extra quality win. They also both have high-quality wins over Notre Dame and Florida, respectively. And Alabama has that loss. The ratings are meant to weight the relative strength of the teams if they met on a neutral field and to be compared to the point spread on a given game. Right idea, but this seemed like a reach. Hailing from the SEC and boasting this year’s Heisman Trophy probable in running back Leonard Fournette, LSU is 7-0. The Buckeyes we well outside the picture at No. 16.
That said: I am a bit puzzled about the committee’s decision to leave Baylor out of the top four for scheduling reasons and put Ohio State in. Not only do the Horned Frogs and Bears not play until the Friday after Thanksgiving, but neither team has played No. 14 Oklahoma State or No. 15 Oklahoma. It wasn’t just who the top four teams were, but the order in which they were seeded as well.
That would be fine.
Alabama’s uber-high ranking could well be a blessing in disguise, a potential Trojan Horse of playoff proportions.
“I think it has been great for the game and I think it’s been really good for people to talk about, ” Ferentz said. “We know what that confetti taste like”. Meanwhile, they boast only one win over another team in the current top 25 (No. 19 Texas A&M).
But if that’s the case, that helps Ohio State.
The Buckeyes ranks fifth in the nation in scoring defense and 16th in scoring defense.
For the second year in a row, Ole Miss finds itself in the season’s opening College Football Playoff Top 25.
The implication is that a team like Baylor – first in points scored, 59th in points allowed – doesn’t impress the committee as much.
No. 9 Iowa (8-0) and No. 10 Florida (7-1) rounded out the CFP top 10. The ranking is one spot higher than Utah’s ranking in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll and the Amway USA Today Coaches Poll, which were released Sunday. Didn’t happen, so it won’t happen. Those teams will get their chances to move up in the coming weeks.
They have a major test against Florida State this weekend, however.
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Clemson is the initial top-ranked team in the CFP rankings and defending national champion Ohio State checked in at No. 3.
