Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe. BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

CFP rankings: Alabama drops out of field; Big Ten still dominates

By Adam Gretz | Last updated Nov 27, 2024 4:17 PM ET

The latest College Football Playoff rankings were released on Tuesday night and there were some big changes throughout the rankings and potential playoff field. Including one big-name program that dropped out of the playoff field for the time being.

Oregon, Ohio State, Texas and Penn State remained in the top-four spots, while Notre Dame moved into the No. 5 spot in place of Indiana.

Indiana, thanks to its loss to Ohio State, dropped down to the No. 10 spot.

Another team that took a big drop this week? Alabama, going from No. 7 all the way down to No. 13 following its loss to Oklahoma. Alabama is also the second team out of the field. Clemson is the first team out.

Here is a look at this week's top-25 rankings as well as the potential field as things sit right now.

THE UPDATED CFP TOP 25 HAS DROPPED pic.twitter.com/p4pom73Np0
— ESPN (@espn) November 27, 2024

Oregon, Miami, Texas and Boise State remain the four teams in the bye week spots by being the four highest ranked conference champions, while Arizona State would get a spot by behind the next highest ranked conference champion.

But the Sun Devils spot is not quite locked in given its No. 16 ranking and the fact Tulane in the AAC is lurking at No. 17.

Arizona State only moving up four spots in the overall rankings despite beating the then-No. 14 ranked BYU Cougars, and still being behind a couple of three-loss SEC teams (South Carolina, Alabama and Ole Miss), is a window into how much respect the committee is giving the SEC.

The Big 10 is still the most dominant conference in the rankings with four teams in the playoff field (Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State and Indiana), while the SEC has three teams. The ACC with SMU and Miami has two teams, with Clemson just lurking on the fringes.

The next two weeks are going to be fascinating to watch unfold.

Does a three-loss SEC team find a way in?

Does the Big 12 get its champion in or will the AAC poach that spot?

Has Indiana continued to do enough despite its big loss against Ohio State?

Those are all questions that need to be (and will be) answered in the coming weeks.

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on Twitter @AGretz

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