College Football Playoff Rankings Prediction Top 10 Projection
10. Indiana Hoosiers 6-1
Last Week College Football Playoff Ranking: 11
The Case For This Spot: With BYU losing to Coastal Carolina, and with the Indiana 14-6 win over Wisconsin, the Hoosiers are not in the mix for a New Year’s Six bowl game with a win over Purdue. It’s the second-best team in the Big Ten – it rocked the Michigan State team 24-0 that beat Northwestern – and the CFP ranking will show it.
Up Next: Purdue
9. Miami Hurricanes 8-1
Last Week College Football Playoff Ranking: 10
The Case For This Spot: Beating Duke is no big deal, but doing it 48-0 in the first game after missing the last several weeks is impressive. The College Football Playoff is realistically out now that Clemson beat Virginia Tech last week, but beat North Carolina, beat Georgia Tech, and go to – most likely – the Orange Bowl.
Up Next: North Carolina
8. Iowa State Cyclones 8-2
Last Week College Football Playoff Ranking: 9
The Case For This Spot: West Virginia is pretty good. It came into the game against Iowa State with the Big 12’s best defense, a great coaching staff, and a solid offense, and it left Ames a 42-6 loser. Iowa State is on a five-game tear on the way to playing Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship. Forgetting that the Cyclones should be ranked lower than Louisiana and Coastal Carolina, they’re going nowhere but up this week.
Up Next: Oklahoma (Big 12 Championship)
7. Cincinnati Bearcats 8-0
Last Week College Football Playoff Ranking: 7
The Case For This Spot: There isn’t one. The Bearcats are going to be way, way, WAY over-ranked, missing a truly great win and struggling against a UCF team several weeks ago that’s fine, but isn’t the powerhouse of the previous few seasons.
Up Next: at Tulsa
6. Florida Gators 8-1
Last Week College Football Playoff Ranking: 6
The Case For This Spot: The Gators will be cemented in their holding spot. The win over Tennessee was business-like, but hardly spectacular enough to boost into the top five. Their situation is simple – beat LSU, beat Alabama, go to the College Football Playoff. Go 1 of 2, and go to the – most likely – Orange Bowl.
Up Next: LSU