There are two Southeastern Conference programs among the top four teams in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings, and neither one is Alabama.
LSU (9-0) moved past Ohio State (9-0) and into the top spot of the second installment of the CFP rankings, which were released Tuesday night on ESPN. Clemson (10-0) and Georgia (8-1) filled the third and fourth spots, with the Crimson Tide (8-1) dropping from third to fifth following Saturday’s 46-41 loss to LSU in Tuscaloosa.
Alabama does not have any wins over teams currently among the top 25 teams as voted on by the 13-member selection committee, while Georgia has wins over No. 11 Florida and No. 16 Notre Dame but also has a home loss to a South Carolina team that is 4-6.
“As you look at No. 4 and No. 5 and the discussion around those two teams, those are two really good one-loss teams,” CFP committee chair and Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens said on ESPN. “We just saw Alabama have a tough loss against LSU, but then you compare that against Georgia’s resume and those two big wins that they’ve had.”
Oregon (8-1) was sixth in this week’s rankings, with Utah (8-1), Minnesota (9-0), Penn State (8-1) and Oklahoma (8-1) rounding out the top 10.