College Football Playoff Rankings 2020: Official Committee Poll Ahead of Week 15

The projected field for the College Football Playoff remains unchanged after the CFP selection committee released its newest rankings Tuesday.

Alabama leads the way following a 55-17 drubbing of LSU. Notre Dame, Clemson and Ohio State round out the Top Four.

Week 15 CFP Rankings

1. Alabama

2. Notre Dame

3. Clemson

4. Ohio State

5. Texas A&M

6. Florida

7. Iowa State

8. Cincinnati

9. Georgia

10. Miami

11. Oklahoma

12. Indiana

13. Coastal Carolina

14. Northwestern

15. USC

16. Iowa

17. North Carolina

18. BYU

19. Louisiana

20. Texas

21. Colorado

22. Oklahoma State

23. NC State

24. Tulsa

25. Missouri

Week 14 provided little in the way of surprises.

The Crimson Tide were up 45-14 on LSU at halftime, quickly eliminating any doubt about that result. Virginia Tech gave Clemson a game through the first half before the Tigers pulled away in the second en route to a 45-10 victory. A 17-point fourth quarter helped Texas A&M stave off an upset at the hands of Auburn. Florida didn't have much trouble brushing Tennessee aside.

The Buckeyes dropped 52 points on Michigan State, so there was little chance of them falling out of the Top Four. Their grip on a playoff place might be somewhat tenuous, though, despite their perfect 5-0 record.

Michigan announced Saturday's game against Ohio State is canceled because of a COVID-19 outbreak within the team. As things stand now, OSU's regular season is over since it failed to meet the six-game threshold necessary to qualify for the Big Ten Championship.

If that remains the case, it raises the question of whether the selection committee would vault a one-loss Texas A&M, which won't win the SEC and suffered a 28-point defeat to Alabama in October, into the semifinals.

CBSSports.com's Dennis Dodd reported changing the qualifications for the Big Ten title game hasn't been a pressing matter for officials within the conference, so Ohio State may not be getting a lifeline there. One Big Ten athletic director, however, seemed to leave open the possibility of altering the Week 15 schedule, per The Athletic's Nicole Auerbach:

There's a pretty simple—albeit highly unlikely—solution to the situation:

Coastal Carolina and BYU did something similar, quickly lining up a Week 14 encounter that pitted two of the best Group of Five schools against one another. It proved to be one of the best games of the season.

The Chanticleers stopped Dax Milne just short of the end zone as time expired to preserve a 22-17 victory over the Cougars.

The victory moved Coastal Carolina up from No. 18 to No. 13, while BYU fell from 13th to 18th. Coastal still has to overtake Cincinnati, though, in order to earn the New Year's Six bowl berth set aside for the highest-ranked Group of Five team.

The Bearcats control their own destiny. Their regular-season finale against Tulsa was canceled, so the teams won't face off until the AAC Championship on Dec. 19. A win over the Golden Hurricane will almost assuredly see Cincinnati through to the Peach Bowl.