The top five teams in the penultimate college football playoff rankings, released Tuesday, remained unchanged, while hopes of the Iowa State playoffs received a boost and those of Cincinnati absorbed once again.
Alabama continues to lead the rankings at No. 1, followed by No. 2 at Notre Dame, No. 3 at Clemson, No. 4 at Ohio State and No. 5 at Texas A&M. Notre Dame and Clemson are scheduled to meet for the second time this season in Saturday’s ACC championship game.
Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide (10-0) entered the SEC championship to face Florida’s No. 7, who only dropped one spot after losing 37-34 at home to 3-5 LSU. Ohio State, which played most recently on Dec. 5 and has only recorded five games this season, faces No. 14 in the Northwest Big Ten Championship.
Iowa State, which was inactive this past weekend, rises one spot to No. 6 entering the Big 12 championship game against No. 10 from Oklahoma. The Cyclones, Gators and Georgia’s No. 8 have two losses, but are ahead of Cincinnati’s undefeated No. 9 (8-0), who has dropped one spot in each of the last two rankings despite not playing since Oct. 21. November at UCF.
The Bearcats finally have a chance to impress the committee in the American Athletic Conference title match against No. 23 in Tulsa, which raises one place. But even a win could keep them behind the Big 12 champion and possibly Texas A&M, who are scheduled to face Tennessee unclassified this week. Georgia is inactive after canceling its match against Vanderbilt due to COVID-19 and other list availability issues with the Commodores.
Neither Notre Dame nor Clemson played last weekend, but Notre Dame’s PCP chances improved after North Carolina defeated Miami 62-26 on the road. The Tar Heels move up two places to No. 15, while Miami drops eight to No. 18. Notre Dame beat North Carolina 31-17 on Nov. 27 at Chapel Hill. Even if the Fighting Irish lose to Clemson, their profile seems strong enough to stay in the top four.
Coastal Carolina (11-0) needed a late touchdown to Troy to become the FBS first team to 11 wins. The Chanticleers rise one spot to No. 12 entering the Sun Belt title against No. 19 in Louisiana.
USC (5-0) remains the Pac-12 team with the best score at No. 13, rising two places, but the Trojans do not have a signature victory after canceling a game with Colorado, which fell to the number 25 after the first loss of the season. Clay Helton’s team plays Friday in Oregon without qualifying in the Pac-12 championship game.
San Jose State debuted in the PCP rankings at No. 24 after a 6-0 start, the team’s best since 1939. The Spartans will face Boise State unclassified in the Mountain West championship game Saturday in Las Vegas.
BYU and NC State are among the nine teams rising one spot in this week’s rankings, checking out No. 17 and No. 22, respectively.
The PCP selection committee reveals its final standings on Sunday, including the four semi-final teams.