The first College Football Playoff rankings dropped Tuesday night, and right on cue, the committee gave college football fans plenty to be mad about. Alabama somehow checked in at No. 5 while Tennessee got parked down at No. 13. Keep in mind this is just two weeks after the Vols handled the Tide head-to-head.
THE CRAIG CARTON SHOW–UNFILTERED, UNAPOLOGETIC AND UNMISSABLE. DOWNLOAD HIS DAILY PODCAST NOW!
Craig Carton wasn’t having any of the committee’s nonsense Wednesday’s The Craig Carton Show.
This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX News may be compensated. This content was created by a team that works independently from the FOX newsroom.
“Question, question, question. Question on the floor. How is Alabama ranked fifth when Tennessee is ranked 13th? Inquiring minds want to know,” Carton said. “They played each other two weeks ago. Tennessee beat them by 16 points.”
It is a fair question that has very little to do with hyping up Knoxville.
Carton pointed out that Tennessee has its own flaws and probably does not belong anywhere near the top five right now. But when both programs sit at two losses, common sense suggests the team that won on the field should have the advantage.
Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer reacts during the first half against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Oct. 17, 2026. (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
Dejuan Lane (10) of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates after recovering the ball against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the first half at Neyland Stadium on Oct. 17, 2026, in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Camden Hall/Getty Images)
“Now, I’m not saying Tennessee should be a top-five program right now. They shouldn’t be,” he noted. “But how does Alabama, with two losses, get ranked eight spots ahead of Tennessee when they just lost to Tennessee head-to-head? “
That gets to the heart of what actually frustrates people about this process. Head-to-head is not just another metric on a piece of paper, it is the only piece of evidence that was decided by the players on the field.
“Isn’t head-to-head, shouldn’t head-to-head, unless you’re a porn star, of course, shouldn’t head-to-head be the number one deciding factor when figuring out which team should be over another team? ” he asked. “Then you can, of course, get into strength of schedule, the opponents, and all the other nonsense. They played against each other. I watched the game. Tennessee dominated Alabama.”
Yet whenever Alabama drops a couple of games, the committee seems to look for every possible reason to keep the Crimson Tide near the top. “And yet, here we are, like we always are, currying favor with the Crimson Tide,” Carton pointed out.
Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. #21 of Alabama looks on during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and Alabama Crimson Tide at Neyland Stadium on Oct. 17, 2026, in Knoxville, Tenn. (Roger Wimmer/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)
“You know, the only good thing about Alabama, not the, uh, is that a state in Alabama? It is. I’m pretty sure it’s a state,” he said. “The only good thing about Alabama, not the state, because I think it’s a wonderful state, but the college, are those hot sorority videos that come out every September and October. You know the ones, 150 girls standing on the front porch of an old plantation house … I love it. I love it, man. But Tennessee’s got the same thing there, too.”
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Viral videos aside, the bottom line comes down to football, and Carton finished by giving Alabama fans a dose of reality.
“And I’ve got to tell you this, I’m not saying that Tennessee got screwed, but I’m saying that Alabama’s screwing everybody else,” he concluded. “And Alabama is not winning a national title this year, and they should not. Sorry, Crimson Tide fans. Roll Tide. You should not be No. 5 in these first official rankings when it comes to football.”
Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com / Follow along on X: @alejandroaveela
Alejandro Avila is a longtime writer at OutKick, living in Southern California.
