Nov 9, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; The Duck rides a motorcycle and the Oregon Ducks take the field before a game against the Maryland Terrapins at Autzen Stadium. Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

College Football Playoff Rankings: Oregon Ducks Lead, Georgia and Miami Drop

Originally posted on Oregon Ducks on SI
By Charlie Viehl | Last updated Nov 12, 2024 9:02 PM ET

Tuesday night marks the second release of the College Football Playoff rankings, and the Oregon Ducks should expect to stay No. 1. Behind Oregon, however, the CFP Selection Committee had some decisions to make in this week's rankings.

The No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes stay put, but former top-four teams in the Georgia Bulldogs and Miami Hurricanes both suffered upset losses on the road. Georgia falls to No. 12, Miami drops to No. 9.

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The No. 3 Texas Longhorns and No. 4 Penn State Nittany Lions replace Georgia and Miami, and the Big Ten Conference has three out of the top four teams, four out of the top five with No. 5 Indiana. The Big Ten and SEC are tied with four teams in the top 12.

However, the final bracket will look much different because the first four rankings are reserved for the four highest-ranked conference champions at the end of the season.

No. 6 BYU defeated Utah with a last-minute field goal. The game's officiating has sparked controversy, but the Cougars are now 9-0 with wins over No. 14 SMU and No. 16 Kansas State. Is BYU's resume better than Indiana's? For now, the Cougars remain one spot behind the Hoosiers.

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The argument is potentially irrelevant because the Hoosiers face Ohio State on Saturday. It will be Indiana coach Curt Cignetti's toughest test of the season, but it's an opportunity to prove the critics wrong. A win over the Buckeyes all-but guarantees the Hoosiers an appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game.

With three weeks left in the regular season, the rankings are bound to change. As it currently stands, the highest seeds would belong to Oregon (Big Ten), Texas (SEC), BYU (Big 12), and Miami (ACC) in the playoff bracket. However, the rankings will not reflect the automatic bids in the top-four until after the conference champions have been decided.

Here are the College Football Playoff rankings released on Tuesday, Nov. 12.

1 Oregon

2 Ohio State

3 Texas

4 Penn State

5 Indiana

6 BYU

7 Tennessee

8 Notre Dame

9 Miami

10 Alabama

11 Ole Miss