The Athletic has live coverage of the College Football Playoff rankings release.
By Cameron Teague Robinson, Seth Emerson, Austin Meek and Nicole Auerbach
The first College Football Playoff rankings for the 2023 season were released Tuesday. Here’s what you need to know:
- Ohio State, Georgia, Michigan and Florida State round out the top four, respectively.
- Washington and Oregon are on the outside looking in as the fifth and sixth spots. The Huskies are coming off two single-digit wins over unranked teams in Arizona State and Stanford.
- The Ducks (7-1) are the only team in the top six with a loss, a 36-33 defeat to Washington on Oct. 14. Oregon has a tough final stretch with two of its final four matchups against ranked opponents.
| CFP Rk | Team | Record | AP Rk |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 8-0 | 3 | |
2 | 8-0 | 1 | |
3 | 8-0 | 2 | |
4 | 8-0 | 4 | |
5 | 8-0 | 5 | |
6 | 7-1 | 6 | |
7 | 7-1 | 7 | |
8 | 7-1 | 8 | |
9 | 7-1 | 10 | |
10 | 7-1 | 11 | |
11 | 7-1 | 9 | |
12 | 7-1 | 14 | |
13 | 7-1 | 15 | |
14 | 6-2 | 13 | |
15 | 7-2 | 12 | |
16 | 6-2 | 16 | |
17 | 6-2 | 19 | |
18 | 6-2 | 18 | |
19 | 6-2 | 20 | |
20 | 7-2 | 24 | |
21 | 6-2 | 22 | |
22 | 6-2 | NR | |
23 | 6-2 | 25 | |
24 | 7-1 | 21 | |
25 | 8-0 | 17 |
Buckeyes take top spot on strong resume
Ohio State isn’t a perfect team, but the Buckeyes were rewarded with the top spot in the first College Football Playoff rankings based off their resume. They went on the road to beat top-10 Notre Dame and led by their stout defense, earned another top-10 win when Penn State came to Columbus a few weeks ago. The first poll doesn’t mean much, though, other than that Ohio State controls its own destiny back to the College Football Playoff.
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Win out, beat Michigan in Ann Arbor on the final week of the season and the Buckeyes should be a lock for the playoff. That’s always been the goal, so nothing truly changes. It’s just now getting recognition for putting together the best resume so far this season. — Cameron Teague Robinson, Ohio State beat writer
Georgia right where it needs to be
Georgia has been through this enough times, dating back to the 2017 season, to know this will all play itself out in the end, so people around the team weren’t sweating the first round of rankings. That said, most in the fan base have to be pleasantly surprised, even if it’s a spot lower than they were in the traditional polls.
Georgia’s schedule has not been the strongest, and the team hasn’t always been dominant. But despite that to be ranked second is a clear sign that Georgia has a good chance to end up at No. 1 by winning out over a schedule that will be tougher down the stretch. But it also indicates the Bulldogs may be able to afford one loss, as long as it’s not one that stops them from getting to the SEC championship. — Seth Emerson, Georgia beat writer
Why is Michigan No. 3?
Ranking the Wolverines behind Ohio State and Georgia is a reflection of Michigan’s schedule and the fact that the Wolverines have yet to face a ranked opponent. But even with the soft schedule, the committee clearly respects Michigan’s dominance in winning all eight of its games by 24 points or more.
The in-person scouting scandal unfolding at Michigan didn’t appear to hurt the Wolverines in the rankings, and they have a clear path the the CFP as long as they keep winning. Michigan has a trip to Penn State looming Nov. 11, but it’s looking more and more like Michigan and Ohio State are headed for another winner-take-all showdown to end the regular season. — Austin Meek, Michigan beat writer
CFP committee chairman Boo Corrigan says on ESPN that the scouting scandal at Michigan "wasn't any part of our discussions" in putting the Wolverines No. 3. "It's an NCAA issue," he says. "It's not a CFP issue."
— Austin Meek (@byAustinMeek) October 31, 2023
First rankings make complete sense
I’m not surprised to see Ohio State in the top spot, as the Buckeyes have the strongest resume of the bunch. More so than the AP voters, CFP selection committee members tend to value resume over eye test. I always appreciate that reminder — which typically comes with the first set of rankings — after more than two months of AP and coaches polls that keep the preseason favorite in the top spot regardless of schedule or on-field performance, as long as the team doesn’t lose. Georgia has had a couple of scares and some sluggish starts, and the Bulldogs haven’t played anything close to the schedule Ohio State has. So, this makes a ton of sense to me, especially with the meat of Georgia’s slate ahead of it. The Dawgs have plenty of time to improve their resume and make a case for No. 1.
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I’ve got no issues with the rest of the top six, either. Michigan has throttled teams, Florida State has one of the best wins in the country over LSU and Washington has had two mediocre performances in a row. Oregon is and should be the top one-loss team, which means that the Ducks will have a great chance to make the four-team field if they win out. — Nicole Auerbach, senior writer
Required reading
- Four questions for the first College Football Playoff rankings: No. 1, one-loss teams and more
- What we learned in CFB Week 9: Wide-open Big 12, Michigan narratives, Oregon’s title hopes
(Photo: Joe Camporeale / USA Today)