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CFP rankings: Big Ten, SEC dominate initial rankings
Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day. Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

College Football Playoff rankings: Big Ten, SEC dominate initial rankings

By Adam Gretz  |  Last updated Nov 4, 2025 9:19 PM ET

The first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2025 season were released on Tuesday night, and the top of the rankings were dominated by the usual suspects from the Big Ten and SEC. Ohio State holds the top spot, followed by Indiana, Texas A&M, Alabama and Georgia to round out the top five.

With Ole Miss (No. 6) and Oregon (No. 9) also in the top-10, that means seven of the top 10 spots belong to teams from the Big Ten and SEC. 

Texas Tech, BYU and Notre Dame are the only exceptions in the top 10.

First College Football Playoff Rankings feature few surprises

Here is a look at the full rankings, and there are few surprises. 

The biggest surprise might be the Pittsburgh Panthers at No. 24, and the fact that a one-loss Georgia Tech team makes its debut at the No. 17 spot.

This is how the initial bracket would look, with unranked Memphis sneaking into the 12th playoff spot due to the committee ranking them as the best Group of Five team. That would leave No. 12 Texas as the first team out of the field.

It is important to remember these are just the initial rankings and there is still a lot of football to be played this season with some huge matchups along the way, including conference championship games. Ohio State and Indiana, for example, are on track to meet in the Big Ten Championship Game where one of those teams would have to lose. That alone could throw the top of the rankings and bracket into chaos and dictate bye 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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