The second round of the College Football Playoff rankings were released, here are 25 instant reactions from the November 9th version
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College Football Playoff Rankings: Top 25 Instant Reactions
Rankings CFP | CFN | AP | Coaches
25. The College Football Playoff committee basically held serve
It’s not bad. There were a few questionable calls, but nothing all that insane. It was a tough week because everyone but Georgia stunk – at least up top – so there wasn’t much room for movement. The committee didn’t do anything crazy, but there will be a whole lot happening next week after a big weekend of games coming up.
24. San Diego State beat Utah, so …
The committee process is all about getting the pecking order right through the meticulous way of going through each factor – more on the big debate in a moment.
San Diego State lost to Fresno State, and for those who stay up until the wee hours of the morning, it hasn’t looked great in a slew of other games. But if Utah is in at 6-3, putting SDSU in – the Aztecs won 33-31 between the two – was a must.
23. The Penn State factor, Part 1
Penn State should’ve been in somewhere. YEAH, the loss to Illinois is a killer, but it beat Auburn (17), beat Wisconsin (18) in Madison, and lost to Iowa after losing QB Sean Clifford early on and lost in a good fight with Ohio State. Not a big deal – it’ll get in the top 25 if it beats Michigan – but there wasn’t much respect.
22. Watch out for Houston
It’s not ranked, but it’s about to play a huge role. The opening day loss to Texas Tech is a drag, but it wasn’t that bad – the Red Raiders are currently 5-4. There aren’t a slew of great wins, and the schedule isn’t going to get a whole lot stronger. However, that doesn’t matter.
What does is that it’s probably going to play Cincinnati for the American Athletic Conference championship. If the Cougars win out, it’s probably pushing the Bearcats out of the New Year’s Six, much less the College Football Playoff.
21. Louisiana is probably on the Top 25 bubble
Someone from the Sun Belt will end up being in the top 25, but it probably won’t be until the end. Louisiana destroyed Appalachian State, but it doesn’t have any great wins and isn’t looking all that impressive. The only loss is to Texas in the opener, and it gets at Troy, at Liberty, ULM to close. If it wins out, it’ll be deep in the mix for a New Year’s Six appearance.