College Football Playoff rankings predictions: Alabama, Notre Dame in CFP bracket?

No. 3 Indiana Hoosiers

Indiana made a statement earlier this season with an upset win over Oregon and never looked back. Like Ohio State, Indiana has been one of the most consistent teams in college football.

No. 4 Texas Tech Red Raiders

Texas Tech left no doubt on who the best team is in the Big 12 with another dominant win over BYU. The Red Raiders are expected to earn a first-round bye.

No. 5 Oregon Ducks

Oregon is posed to secure the first at-large spot and host Tulane, Virginia, James Madison or Duke. The Ducks do not earn a first-round bye but did get an extra week off by not playing in the Big Ten title game.

No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels

Perhaps the Ole Miss players were not insistent on Lake Kiffin sticking around after turning in his two weeks' notice. It will be worth watching how Ole Miss responds, but don't be surprised if the Rebels are motivated to make a run with all the drama in the rearview mirror.

No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies

Texas A&M will look to follow Ohio State's blueprint from last season. Have your worst performance of the season against a rival and bounce back by winning the national championship. Marcel Reed and company will still be a dangerous out in the postseason.

No. 8 Oklahoma Sooners

Things played out perfectly during the conference championship matchups for Oklahoma to host a first-round playoff game. The additional time off could help a rested John Mateer find his previous form.

No. 9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish

The committee left the door open for Miami to pass Notre Dame in the final rankings, despite neither team playing this weekend. If the committee has not valued Miami's head-to-head win over Notre Dame by now, it is hard to imagine things changing with no more data points.

No. 10 Alabama Crimson Tide

If Alabama misses the College Football Playoff, it leaves the door open for teams to opt out of playing in future conference championship games. Does Alabama deserve to be in over teams like Miami or Texas?

It is hard to say, but the SEC and Big Ten are already threatening anarchy amid the current debate on playoff expansion. The committee avoids an offseason disaster by keeping Bama in the field.

No. 11 Virginia Cavaliers

Fans rooting for chaos are massive Duke fans versus Virginia. Assuming the Cavaliers win, the ACC champs should punch their ticket to the postseason. A loss would likely send James Madison as a surprise entrant into the CFP bracket.

No. 12 Tulane Green Wave

It looks like the Jon Sumrall era in New Orleans will continue just a little while longer. Tulane showed no signs of Sumrall's departure to Florida impacting the team.

The Green Wave will do their best impression of "The Last Dance." Remember, some of these Tulane players are also playing for a chance to make the move to Florida with Sumrall.