College Football Playoff rankings heading into conference championships
On Tuesday night, the College Football Playoff committee announced its final edition of team rankings for the 2020 season before the official playoff field is announced on Sunday. Here is where things stand entering the conference championships:
Alabama (10-0)
Notre Dame (10-0)
Clemson (9-1)
Ohio State (5-0)
Texas A&M (7-1)
Iowa State (8-2)
Florida (8-2)
Georgia (7-2)
Cincinnati (8-0)
Oklahoma (7-2)
Indiana (6-1)
Coastal Carolina (11-0)
USC (5-0)
Northwestern (6-1)
North Carolina (8-3)
Iowa (6-2)
BYU (10-1)
Miami (8-2)
Louisiana (9-1)
Texas (6-3)
Oklahoma State (7-3)
North Carolina State (8-3)
Tulsa (6-1)
San Jose State (6-0)
Colorado (4-1)
Dropped out: Missouri
The first thing that sticks out to me is Cincinnati. The Bearcats are undefeated but are behind a one loss team (Texas A&M) and three two loss teams. They can get a ranked win in the AAC Championship against No. 23 Tulsa, but the committee appears to have already ruled Cincinnati out of the field, even if it finishes undefeated.
Texas A&M appears to have the best chance to get into the field among teams currently outside the top four. The next closest teams all have two losses. Iowa State probably has the next best chance with a win in the Big 12 Championship over Oklahoma.
North Carolina's impressive outing against Miami gave the Tar Heels a two spot jump. They probably would have climbed higher if they played like that consistently throughout the season. Miami falls eight spots to number 18.
The Group of Five spot in the New Year's Six games looks to be either Cincinnati's or Coastal Carolina's. The spot goes to the highest ranked group of five team in the final rankings. Heading into the final week of the regular season, these two have a pretty sizable lead on No. 17 BYU among others. Although Coastal's conference championship game has been cancelled, the Chanticleers will still be eligible for consideration.
Missouri fell out of the rankings after getting blown out by Georgia. San Jose State joins the rankings at No. 24 just before the Mountain West Championship.