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The field for the first 12-team College Football Playoff has now been set, and, of course, it was met with controversy, mostly surrounding SMU getting a bid over Alabama. That's a pretty silly argument—Alabama lost three times, including twice, to 6-6 teams. If the Tide wanted in, they should have beaten either Vanderbilt or Oklahoma.
But enough about who's out. Let's talk about who's in and how those teams stack up at this point in the season.
Below are the power rankings of the 12 teams in this year's College Football Playoffs.
12. Clemson
Sure, Clemson earned its way in with a head-to-head win over SMU in the ACC Championship Game, but that doesn't mean the Tigers deserve to be ranked above the 12th spot.
That's because the Tigers have lost three times this season, making them the only team in this field with more than two defeats. That includes a 33-21 loss to Louisville as well as a blowout loss to Georgia to open the season, with Clemson falling 34-3 in that game. The other loss was to a strong South Carolina team that had a good argument for an at-large bid as well.
The team has improved since and quarterback Cade Klubnik has taken a clear step forward, but Clemson is the weakest team in this field.
11. SMU
You can argue all you want about SMU's inclusion in this field, but that doesn't change the fact that the Mustangs are in as the 11th seed, one spot ahead of Clemson, even though Clemson beat them in the ACC title game.
Sure, SMU is 0-2 against ranked teams, but I thought this post from NBC's Nicole Auerbach really illustrates the flaw in using that logic:
The funniest thing about saying a team has "no top-25" wins is the committee can always backfill spots 20-25 to *give* teams top-25 wins.
Louisville and Duke could easily be placed in that range, which would then give SMU two two-25 wins.
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) December 8, 2024
If we look at the AP poll, based on votes received, Louisville is ranked 27th and Duke 28th. If those teams win their bowl games and a couple teams at the bottom of the top 25 lose, SMU might end the season 2-2 against ranked teams, not 0-2.
10. Arizona State
I live in Iowa and while I'm not an Iowa or Iowa State fan, my wife's father used to work at Iowa State so I've got at least some interest in the Cyclones succeeding. As such, I was rooting for a competitive Big 12 title game.
Cam Skattebo is ridiculous
— PFF College (@PFF_College) December 7, 2024
Instead, we got a blowout. The Sun Devils demolished the Cyclones, winning 45-19 behind another big game from Cameron Skattebo, who had 16 carries for 170 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught one as well.
The loss to Cincinnati is among the worst losses for any playoff team, but the Sun Devils are on a hot streak right now, and I wouldn't want to be a team that has to gameplan against Skattebo.
9. Boise State
The top four seeds going to conference champions might need to be revisited at some point because Boise State probably shouldn't be the No. 3 seed in the playoffs.
Still, credit to the Broncos, who lost to No. 1 Oregon back in September but didn't lose again. Sure, the Mountain West is easier to win than the four power conferences, but winning 11 in a row is impressive, regardless of the competition.
The Broncos also have the most unstoppable player in these playoffs in running back Ashton Jeanty, who has a really good shot to finish with the single-season rushing record.
8. Indiana
What do we make of Indiana? The Hoosiers only lost one game all season, but that one loss was a rough one, as the team was dominated by Ohio State, falling 38-15. Quarterback Kurtis Rourke had just 68 passing yards in that contest.
Still, the team won the rest of its games and while its schedule was easy as it avoided the top Big Ten teams, you can only play who's in front of you. The Hoosiers will face a very tough first-round battle with Notre Dame.
7. Penn State
Penn State earned the sixth seed in the rankings, ahead of three teams that I have higher than them in the power rankings. Clearly, the committee and I don't see eye to eye about the Nittany Lions.
The team played really well against Oregon in the conference title game, losing 45-37 behind a strong effort from Drew Allar. But entering the playoffs off a loss is a mark against them, and the team also lost head-to-head to Ohio State.
People like to talk about SMU's record against ranked teams, but Penn State is just 1-2 against them this year.
6. Tennessee
Tennessee's loss to Arkansas back in October is a huge mark against them, but the Volunteers do have a win against Alabama on its resume, impressively picking Jalen Milroe off twice in the win.
Nico Iamaleava is one of the biggest mysteries entering the playoffs, in the sense that he's capable of some huge games and also some very quiet games. At his best, Iamaleava is a quarterback who can beat anyone.
5. Notre Dame
It was a long journey for Notre Dame to get this far, but here the Irish are.
The team probably had the worst loss of any playoff team, falling 16-14 to Northern Illinois back in September. But the team also has a lot of solid wins on its resume, including a dominant win over a ranked Army team and wins over Texas A&M and Louisville, two teams that are essentially ranked teams, as they're the first two teams out of the AP poll.
The sites of the FIRST EVER College Football Playoff games played on-campus:
• Notre Dame Stadium
• Beaver Stadium
• DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium
• Ohio StadiumPantheons of the sport. Very cool. https://t.co/HjUI0D2Ghx pic.twitter.com/gZg89FuO62
— Ben Stevens (@BenScottStevens) December 8, 2024
Notre Dame also has a strong shot to make it out of the first round as they take on an Indiana team that's also lost just once but played a weaker schedule—ESPN has Notre Dame with the 59th-best strength of schedule and Indiana at 67th.
4. Texas
In reality, the Longhorns earned the top seed among teams that didn't win their conference. In my version, they're second among such teams.
Despite quarterback Quinn Ewers missing some time this season, the Longhorns went 11-2, losing in overtime to Georgia in the SEC Championship Game and also falling to Georgia during the regular season.
An undefeated mark against teams that aren't Georgia is impressive, but I think we have to hold it against the Horns at least a little bit, because winning the title likely requires a title game rematch with the Bulldogs.
3. Ohio State
Ohio State's resume took a major hit in the final regular season game as the team lost to Michigan 13-10, costing it a shot at the Big Ten title. The Buckeyes also lost to No. 1 Oregon.
However, Ohio State has some good wins, beating the top 10 programs of Penn State and Indiana. Two wins over playoff teams makes for a strong resume and it's why I have the Buckeyes in the third spot.
2. Georgia
The biggest question mark for the SEC champs? Carson Beck's injury situation, as the Georgia quarterback was injured in the first half against Texas. He reentered the game in overtime to hand the ball off to Trevor Etienne.
If Beck is ready to go for the Bulldogs on Jan. 1, this is a title contender. If he's not...well, who knows?
The feeling in talking with multiple sources in and around the Georgia Bulldog football program is QB Carson Beck has a UCL elbow injury and will miss the Sugar Bowl.
Still waiting official MRI results from UGA pic.twitter.com/kn0EvFb5CR
— Zach Klein (@ZachKleinWSB) December 9, 2024
Overall, Georgia has an impressive resume, beating Texas twice plus defeating Tennessee and Clemson. The team does have two losses, though, falling to Alabama and Ole Miss, two teams that just missed out on playoff spots.
1. Oregon
The No. 1 spot is obvious, as it belongs to the only undefeated team in the country, the Oregon Ducks.
Oregon has been unstoppable this season. Led by the strong play of quarterback Dillon Gabriel, the Ducks have wins over Boise State, Ohio State, Illinois, and Penn State on their resume.
There's just not really a flaw in the team's 2024 record. The Ducks are the clear favorites to win the championship.
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