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College Football Playoff Rankings 2017: Official Committee's List Before Week 11
November 8, 2017
One week in, the College Football Playoff committee apparently feels justified in its initial rankings.
There were no changes to the CPF Top Four in the latest rankings released Tuesday. Georgia remains the top-ranked team in the country and is followed by No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Notre Dame and No. 4 Clemson. Oklahoma remains at No. 5, and TCU sits in the sixth spot.
Here is a look at how the entire poll played out:
1. Georgia
2. Alabama
3. Notre Dame
4. Clemson
5. Oklahoma
6. TCU
7. Miami
8. Wisconsin
9. Washington
10. Auburn
11. USC
12. Michigan State
13. Ohio State
14. Penn State
15. Oklahoma State
16. Mississippi State
17. Virginia Tech
18. UCF
19. Washington State
20. Iowa
21. Iowa State
22. Memphis
23. NC State
24. LSU
25. Northwestern
The biggest change in the poll did not come until No. 6, with TCU replacing Ohio State, which saw its playoff chances end in Kinnick Stadium. Iowa walloped the Buckeyes, 55-24, which sent reverberations around the Big Ten. Coupled with Penn State's three-point loss at Michigan State, the conference now has only Wisconsin to hang its playoff hopes on.
The Badgers are off to a 9-0 start but understandably have not received much love from the committee. Their first game against a ranked opponent won't come until Saturday when they host Iowa. With games against Michigan and Minnesota to close the regular season, there is a legitimate concern about Wisconsin's strength of schedule.
"Strength of schedule is just not there," committee chair Kirby Hocutt said on ESPN last week. "Their best win in the eyes of the selection committee is against a 5-3 Northwestern team, so the selection committee looks forward to watching Wisconsin continue to play, and looks forward to them playing quality opponents in the weeks ahead."
Strength of schedule was also a concern for undefeated Miami, but the Hurricanes' schedule is ramping up at the perfect time. Miami put together perhaps its best all-around performance last Saturday with a dominant 28-10 win over Virginia Tech. The Hurricanes forced four turnovers and never trailed against the Hokies.
Their biggest test of the year will come this weekend when they host No. 3 Notre Dame. A win in that game followed by an ACC championship would make Miami a mortal lock for the playoffs.
"We all know that we can't lose to them," Miami linebacker Shaq Quarterman said after practice Tuesday, per Andrea Adelson of ESPN.com. "Last year happened, and we didn't come out with the results we wanted, but this year we can't lose to them. It's just the standard that was set before us."
The other major matchup of the weekend is Oklahoma-TCU, which will determine the Big 12's best chance at getting a playoff team. The Sooners are coming off a wild 62-52 win at Oklahoma State, while TCU recovered from its upset loss to Iowa State with a 24-7 win over Texas.