Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK
Who else moves after a pivotal week 10?
Welcome back to the College Football Playoff rankings, where, whew, man things have changed in a week. The top ten will surely look different after the Georgia Bulldogs smashed Ole Miss over the weekend. The other major game was in Ann Arbor, where the Michigan Wolverines took care of business of Penn State and now wait until The Game for their biggest test.
Elsewhere in the top ten, what the committee does with Washington and Oregon should be interesting. Both teams have wins over Utah and USC, but with Oregon beating both teams by double digits and Washington kind of just scraping by, the committee might put Oregon over Washington even though Washington has the head to head win.
Well, let’s get rid of the speculation and get into the top 25.
1 . Georgia Bulldogs
The Bulldogs finally reclaim the top spot after a 59-17 thrashing of Ole Miss, and they look fully back. The offense was diverse and explosive and now with TE Brock Bowers fully healthy, they’re headed to the SEC title game without breaking a sweat. Tennessee is really their next big test, but for now, the Dawgs are on top.
2. Ohio State Buckeyes
The Buckeyes handled business against Michigan State, and now have a tune-up game against Minnesota before the showdown with Michigan in Ann Arbor. It helps that Ohio State’s offense is seemingly firing on all cylinders, but we won’t know much until Thanksgiving weekend. See you then.
3. Michigan Wolverines
The Wolverines passed their first major test in Happy Valley, dispatching the Penn State Nittany Lions without head coach Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh won’t be on the sidelines for the Wolverines final two games, but it seems like offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore and the Wolverines have found the formula if their passing game isn’t working. Now that they have that, we’ll see you Thanksgiving weekend.
4. Florida State Seminoles
They continue to win, despite the small hiccups along the way. Rivalry games are always weird, and the Noles managed to scrape by Miami 27-20. They struggled in the first half, but then managed to pull away late, which is what the committee likes to see. They’ll likely cruise into the ACC title game, where they’ll probably take on Louisville. Win and you’re likely in.
5. Washington Huskies
Well, here we go. Despite not looking as up to snuff as they did early in the season, the Huskies remain undefeated, and that’s the most important thing. They managed to get by a frisky Utah team, and have a big test against Oregon State on Saturday. Keep winning and you might make something shake.
6. Oregon Ducks
Oregon fans might believe that the current version of the Ducks is better than the current version of UW, but they won’t be able to prove that until Las Vegas more than likely. The Ducks continue to roll after handling USC, and as long as they keep stacking wins, they’ll get their rematch with Washington.
7. Texas Longhorns
With Quinn Ewers back, this team is capable of anything. They managed to scrape by TCU 29-26 in Ewers’ return, but in a weird Big 12 (go look up those potential championship scenarios) they need to continue to win out and win the Big 12 to have an outside shot at the playoff.
8. Alabama Crimson Tide
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Alabama crushed Kentucky on Saturday, and locked up a date with Georgia in Atlanta for the SEC title game. Alabama has some real chaos agent potential with an upset of the Bulldogs. It might be unlikely, but you can’t count Saban and the Tide out.
9. Missouri Tigers
Welcome to the top ten, Missouri! The Tigers have gone about their business in the SEC with a workmanlike efficiency, but any real chance of playing spoiler is probably out the window after losing to Georgia and no shot of an SEC title berth in hands.
10. Louisville Cardinals
Much like Oregon State above them, the Cards are in the top ten for the first time this year. They continue to handle business with a stingy defense and an opportunistic offense. They get Miami and Kentucky to close out the regular season before a big Florida State matchup in the ACC Championship.
See below for the rest of the College Football Playoff top 25 rankings:
11. Oregon State Beavers
12. Penn State Nittany Lions
13. Ole Miss Rebels
14. Oklahoma Sooners
15. LSU Tigers
16. Iowa Hawkeyes
17. Arizona Wildcats
18. Tennessee Volunteers
19. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
20. North Carolina Tar Heels
21. Kansas State Wildcats
22. Utah Utes
23. Oklahoma State Cowboys
24. Tulane Green Wave
25. Kansas Jayhawks
