College Football Playoff Rankings 2020: Official Committee Poll for Final Week

The College Football Playoff field is set, with Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Notre Dame slated to play for the national championship.  

After facing scrutiny last week for seemingly ignoring on-field results, the selection committee reconvened after this weekend's slate of conference title matchups to determine the country's four best teams.

Final 2020 College Football Playoff Rankings

1. Alabama Crimson Tide

2. Clemson Tigers

3. Ohio State Buckeyes

4. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

5. Texas A&M Aggies

6. Oklahoma Sooners

7. Florida Gators

8. Cincinnati Bearcats

9. Georgia Bulldogs

10. Iowa State Cyclones

11. Indiana Hoosiers

12. Coastal Carolina 

13. North Carolina Tar Heels

14. Northwestern

15. Iowa Hawkeyes

16. BYU Cougars

17. USC Trojans

18. Miami Hurricanes

19. Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns

20. Texas Longhorns

21. Oklahoma State Cowboys

22. San Jose State Spartans

23. North Carolina State Wolfpack

24. Tulsa Golden Hurricanes

25. Oregon Ducks

Alabama and Notre Dame will play in the first College Football Playoff semifinal at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on New Year's Day. Ohio State and Clemson will play in the Sugar Bowl in the second semifinal game on Jan. 1. 

The winners of those games will square off in the College Football Playoff Championship at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Jan. 11. 

In addition to the playoff, the remaining New Year's Six bowl matchups were announced. The marquee matchup will feature Oklahoma vs. Florida in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 30. Undefeated Cincinnati will take on Georgia in the Peach Bowl on Jan. 1.  

The Pac-12 champion Oregon Ducks will square off against Iowa State in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 2. Texas A&M and North Carolina will clash in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 2.  

Alabama and Clemson kept the drama to a minimum, winning the SEC and ACC, respectively. The Tigers' 34-10 victory over Notre Dame avenged their double-overtime loss in South Bend, Indiana, on Nov. 7.

Alabama got its first real test of the season against Florida on Saturday night, but head coach Nick Saban's crew held on for a 52-46 win to remain in the top spot in the playoff rankings. 

Ohio State, which entered the week ranked No. 4, had a difficult time against Northwestern before pulling away late for a 22-10 win in the Big Ten Championship Game. 

The real intrigue involved the final slot after then-No. 2 Notre Dame got blown out against Clemson and Texas A&M knocked off Tennessee to finish the regular season 8-1. The committee opted to go with the Fighting Irish after they went 10-1, including that victory over Clemson last month. 

Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher did his best job of politicking for his team after its 34-13 victory over Tennessee on Saturday.  

"Seven straight SEC wins," he told reporters. "Some schools ain't even playing seven games. I don't care what league you're in. If you're gonna pick the best four teams, we're one of them."

The only blemish on the Aggies' resume was a 52-24 defeat against top-ranked Alabama on Oct. 3. They rebounded from that loss with a 41-38 win over then-No. 4 Florida the following week and have won each of their last six games by at least 11 points. 

Fisher seemed to be arguing against Ohio State at the time he made that statement. It was understandable, because the 6-0 Buckeyes looked sluggish for three quarters against Northwestern until head coach Ryan Day decided to keep feeding running back Trey Sermon the football.  

Based on the actual standings, though, Fisher's argument was against Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish do have the best win of the season between the two teams. Both were blown out in the one game each of them lost. 

Notre Dame's only previous appearance in the College Football Playoff was a 30-3 loss to Clemson in the 2018 Cotton Bowl. 

Even in an unprecedented season amid the pandemic, the college football landscape is still very similar to what it has been. Clemson and Alabama have been in the playoffs six times in seven years since the format was adopted for the 2014 season. 

Ohio State is making its second straight playoff appearance and fourth overall. The Buckeyes have played the fewest games of any team to make the top four, but their talent and reputation certainly warrants inclusion among this group of elite programs competing for a national title. 

The Buckeyes will be play Clemson in a CFP semifinal for the second straight year. The Tigers overcame a 16-point second-quarter deficit to earn a 29-23 win on Travis Etienne's 34-yard touchdown catch with less than two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. 

Clemson went on to the College Football Playoff Championship Game, where it got blown out 42-25 by LSU. That game remains the only loss of Trevor Lawrence's college career as a starting quarterback.