Will Ole Miss be in the playoff field when the second set of rankings are released on Tuesday night?
The Rebels are 8-2 after beating Georgia 28-10 at home on Saturday. The win was a vindication of Lane Kiffin’s transfer portal efforts over the offseason as the Rebels were mauled in the trenches a season ago by the Bulldogs. Ole Miss bolstered its defensive line via transfers ahead of the 2024 season, and the line was dominant in the rain on Saturday.
Ole Miss was at No. 16 in the first set of rankings and should move up considerably on Tuesday. But how significant will that jump be?
We think it’ll be enough to put the Rebels in the projected playoff bracket. And Ole Miss could even knock Georgia from the 12-team field. At least for a week, anyway.
Yes, Georgia has a win over Texas, but the Bulldogs also now have losses to both Alabama and Ole Miss. We can’t put anything past the committee, but it’s hard to see how Georgia could be ahead of one or both of the teams that beat the Bulldogs.
The committee can also drop Georgia out of the projected top 12 knowing the Bulldogs will be back in the field with a win in Week 12. Georgia hosts Tennessee next weekend. If Georgia loses, it’s probably not going to make the playoff with three losses. If it wins, then the committee can figure out where it wants to seed the Bulldogs next week.
Here’s how we think the projected playoff field will look on Tuesday.
First-round byes
1. Oregon (10-0, projected Big Ten champion)
It’s hard to see the Ducks being anywhere but No. 1 again after an easy win over Maryland. Dillon Gabriel set the all-time FBS record for total touchdowns in the win and will add to that total in the coming weeks.
2. Texas (8-1, projected SEC champion)
The Longhorns are in a three-way tie for first in the SEC with Tennessee and Texas A&M. The Longhorns play the Aggies in the final week of the season, and if each team is 6-1 in the conference when they play then the winner will be in the SEC title game.
3. BYU (9-0, projected Big 12 champion)
The Cougars looked toast late in their game vs. Utah on Saturday night. But as Jake Retzlaff was sacked on fourth down, Utah got flagged for a defensive holding. The penalty gave BYU a first down and the Cougars marched down the field for a game-winning 44-yard field goal with three seconds left and a 22-21 win.
4. Miami (9-1, projected ACC champion)
We don’t think Miami will fall below SMU in Tuesday’s rankings after losing to Georgia Tech. The Mustangs were off on Saturday and started the weekend nine spots below the Hurricanes. It could be close, though, and we wouldn’t be totally shocked if SMU was in this spot.
First-round matchups
No. 12 Boise State (8-1, projected Mountain West champion) at No. 5 Ohio State (8-1, at-large)
The Broncos took care of business against Nevada at home as Ashton Jeanty had 34 carries for 209 yards and three scores. Ohio State had an easy win at home over a Purdue team that’s easily the worst in the Big Ten.
No. 11 Ole Miss (8-2, at-large) at No. 6 Penn State (8-1, at-large)
This would be a rematch of the Peach Bowl a season ago. Ole Miss won that game and you can make a strong case that both teams are better in different ways. The Rebels’ defense is now a strength, and the Penn State offense has looked much better, though it struggled in Week 10 vs. Ohio State.
No. 10 Notre Dame (8-1, at-large) at No. 7 Tennessee (8-1, at-large)
Notre Dame dominated a hapless Florida State team on Saturday night. We think they could fall a spot simply based on the strength of Alabama’s win over LSU. Tennessee beat Mississippi State at home and hopes to have Nico Iamaleava at full strength next week vs. Georgia.
No. 9 Alabama (7-2, at-large) at No. 8 Indiana (10-0, at-large)
What an unexpected and fun playoff matchup this could be. After Indiana moved up to No. 5 in the AP Top 25 on Sunday, we wouldn’t be stunned to see the Hoosiers a spot or two higher in the CFP rankings. However, the 20-15 home win over Michigan might have been a bit too close for comfort to consider a jump for the Hoosiers. No matter what, we think an 11-1 regular season will get Indiana into the playoff.
