How the Georgia Bulldogs can still make the SEC championship with some help
Georgia Bulldogs fans fear missing the playoff after being left outside of the bracket in the College Football Playoff. However, not only is there a significant chance they will make the playoff, but the Bulldogs also can still make the SEC championship game. There are some crazy scenarios out there, but UGA Wire found one that seems reasonable.
For those of you wanting the SEC tiebreaking procedures, here they are.
Georgia wins vs. Tennessee and wins out
First, their part. Georgia needs to beat No. 6 Tennessee this weekend. While the Bulldogs still have a 46% chance of making the playoff with a loss, it would more than likely eliminate them from the SEC championship. However, if they beat Tennessee and win out, they’d finish 10-2 (6-2 SEC), so they’d still be in pretty good shape to at least make the playoff.
Unfortunately, Georgia would need a little help to get to the SEC championship.
Week 14: Alabama loses to Oklahoma
John David Mercer-Imagn Images
Alabama plays a trap game on the road against the Oklahoma Sooners. Oklahoma was a ranked team until it started playing its SEC slate; they’re 1-5 against those teams. However, the Sooners have about an 18% chance of winning this matchup. This needs to happen because Alabama is ahead of Georgia due to winning head to head and tiebreaker No. 4 (cumulative conference winning percentage of all conference opponents), so the Crimson Tide need to lose to finish 5-3 in the SEC.
Week 14: LSU loses to Vandy
The Vanderbilt Commodores shockingly upset the Alabama Crimson Tide a few weeks ago, but they’ll have to bring back that magic against LSU for Georgia to have a chance. LSU would be ahead of Georgia in Tiebreaker No. 4 (cumulative conference winning percentage of all conference opponents) unless they lose, too. ESPN gives the Commodores a 26.5% chance of winning.
If all of these events happen, one team would have a 7-1 record in the SEC (either Texas or Texas A&M) and four would have a 6-2 SEC record. You’d have to go to tiebreaker No. 4 to rule two teams out (Ole Miss and Tennessee) due to inferior conference opponent win percentage (Texas A&M and Georgia opponents have .435, Ole Miss has .375, Tennessee has .359).
Then you go through tiebreaker No. 2 between Georgia and Texas A&M, record vs. common conference opponents. Both teams have played Florida, Mississippi State, Auburn and Texas. Georgia’s win over Texas would give it the edge over the Aggies and send it to the SEC championship for a rematch against Texas.
The Big Ten is well represented at the top of three major rankings ahead of week 12
The Big Ten is on top of the college football world after 11 weeks of action in the 2024 season. The conference has four teams within the top six of all three major rankings. Starting with the most prominent ranking of this part of the season, the College Football Playoff rankings.
The Big Ten has four of the top five ranked teams in the country, with the Oregon Ducks, the Ohio State Buckeyes, com, and the Indiana Hoosiers ranked No. 1, No. 2, No. 4, and No. 5, respectively. The only program breaking up the Big Ten party within the top five is the SEC’s Texas Longhorns at No. 2.
Notably, no other Big Ten teams outside of those four are ranked within the College Football Playoff rankings. In the US LBM Coaches Poll, Oregon and Ohio State are ranked as the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country, while Texas and the Tennessee Volunteers separate the Ducks and Buckeyes from Penn State and Indiana at No. 5 and No. 6, respectively.
The AP Poll mirrors the College Football Playoff rankings in terms of the top five, with Oregon at No. 1, Ohio State at No. 2, Penn State at No. 4, and Indiana at No. 5.
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Clemson has to get the job done but also needs some luck.
Clemson football’s playoff hopes took a hit after a tough home loss to Louisville last weekend, as it dropped them behind both Miami and SMU in the ACC standings. This setback means that Clemson can no longer control its destiny and must rely on Miami or SMU slipping up to keep their championship path alive.
For Clemson to secure an ACC Championship spot, they need Miami to lose twice or SMU to falter. The Tigers got a break when Georgia Tech pulled off a 28-23 upset over Miami, highlighting the Hurricanes’ defensive issues. Miami, having shown vulnerabilities all season, was exposed further as Georgia Tech tallied over 270 rushing yards. With two ACC games left, Clemson needs Miami to lose at least once more for a better chance at the title.
In their next few games, Miami hosts Wake Forest on November 23, followed by a visit to Syracuse. Syracuse’s offense, known for exploiting defensive gaps, could challenge Miami. If Miami loses again, Clemson could gain entry into the ACC title game, potentially leading to a spot in the expanded College Football Playoff field.
Alternatively, Clemson could still reach the ACC Championship if Virginia wins its last two conference games, including an upset over SMU. Louisville would also need to trail Virginia in the standings for Clemson to win the tiebreaker. This complex scenario isn’t highly likely, but college football’s unpredictability leaves room for anything.
However, Clemson’s playoff aspirations hinge on taking care of business this Saturday against Pitt. The Tigers, sitting at 7-2 overall and 6-1 in ACC play, are favored by 10.5 points as they prepare to face Pitt at noon on ESPN.
How does the bracket for the 12-team College Football Playoff look after Georgia and Miami lost, and Alabama won?
There’s a great deal of football left to be played, but if the 12-team College Football Playoff started today, the Georgia Bulldogs would be out.
The Alabama Crimson Tide would be in, as would the Texas Longhorns, Tennessee Volunteers and Ole Miss Rebels. Yes, Ole Miss jumped Georgia in Tuesday’s updated selection committee rankings after its 28-10 victory over the Bulldogs at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
Georgia is No. 12 in the new list, but is the selection committee’s first team out followed by the SMU Mustangs.
As for Alabama, the Crimson Tide moved up one spot to No. 10 following their 42-13 blowout win at LSU.
But playoff rankings and actual bracket seeding are two different things. The Miami Hurricanes are the No. 9 team in the playoff committee rankings, but they’re the No. 4 seed as the projected ACC champion.
Again, there’s a great deal of football still to be played with conference championship races to be sorted out. SMU may be one of the first teams out in the latest rankings, but it still controls its ACC title game path. The same is true for Deion Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes in the Big 12. Both teams have three remaining regular-season games.
Here’s a look at what the bracket for the 12-team field would look like if the College Football Playoff started tomorrow, as well as who Alabama would face.
Projected Conference Champions, First-Round Byes
No. 1 seed: Oregon Ducks
Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Oregon College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 1
Oregon Current College Football Playoff Seed: No. 1
Oregon 2024 Record: 10-0 overall, 7-0 Big Ten
The Oregon Ducks are one of just three unbeaten Power Four schools after Miami lost at Georgia Tech. Indiana and BYU are the other two. Oregon is also ranked No. 1 in both the Coaches Poll and AP poll. This is an easy choice by the committee.
No. 2 seed: Texas Longhorns
Mikala Compton/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Texas College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 3
Texas Current College Football Playoff Seed: No. 2
Texas 2024 Record: 8-1 overall, 4-1 SEC
Texas is the No. 2 seed because it is projected to win an SEC that still has a number of other teams that could make their way to Atlanta, including Alabama. With Georgia’s loss to Ole Miss, the Longhorns overtook the Bulldogs for the top spot among SEC teams.
No. 3 seed: BYU Cougars
The Brigham Young Cougars run on the field after defeating the Utah Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Rob Gray-Imagn Images
BYU College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 6
BYU Current College Football Playoff Seed: No. 3
BYU 2024 Record: 9-0 overall, 6-0 Big 12
A big surprise this season is the Big 12 championship race, which most preseason predictions awarded to Kyle Whittingham and the Utah Utes. But it’s BYU that controls its title game path after surviving last week’s rivalry with Utah and close calls against Baylor and Oklahoma State.
No. 4 seed: Miami Hurricanes
Matt Pendleton-USA TODAY Sports
Miami College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 9
Miami Current College Football Playoff Seed: No. 4
Miami 2024 Record: 9-1 overall, 5-1 ACC
Miami’s projection is a bit interesting because it is third in the ACC standings behind SMU and Clemson, the latter of which has two losses on the season. But Cam Ward and the ‘Canes are still on a path to get to the ACC championship game, provided they avoid further upsets against Wake Forest and Syracuse.
First Round CFP Matchups
No. 12 seed Boise State Broncos at No. 5 seed Ohio State Buckeyes
TreVeyon Henderson (32) celebrates with Jeremiah Smith (4) after scoring a touchdown against the Purdue Boilermakers: Samantha Madar-Imagn Images
Boise State College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 13
Boise State 2024 Record: 8-1 overall, 5-0 Mountain West
Ohio State College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 2
Ohio State 2024 Record: 8-1 overall, 5-1 Big Ten
The Buckeyes are the highest-ranked example of the difference between playoff ranking and playoff seeding. Ohio State still has a great chance to take the No. 1 overall seed when the final 12-team field is announced in December.
While Boise State is one spot behind Georgia in the CFP rankings, it is the highest-ranked Group of Five squad and the projected No. 12 seed. The Broncos would draw a tough matchup: a visit to Columbus.
No. 11 seed Ole Miss Rebels at No. 6 seed Penn State Nittany Lions
Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images
Ole Miss College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 11
Ole Miss 2024 Record: 8-2 overall, 4-2 SEC
Penn State College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 4
Penn State 2024 Record: 8-1 overall, 5-1 Big Ten
Big Ten teams are doing very well for themselves in the expanded playoff field. New conference member Oregon leads the way, and Ohio State is, well, Ohio State — a perennial league power. At the onset of the 2024 season, no one seemed more likely to benefit from the 12-team format than Penn State, and that is bearing out.
In Oxford, Lane Kiffin won the biggest game in his five seasons at Ole Miss with the victory over Georgia. The Rebels’ Week 5 loss to Kentucky is an ugly one, but their chances of reaching the playoff are strong if they avoid the upset bug against the Florida Gators and their Egg Bowl showdown with Mississippi State (in Oxford).
No. 10 Alabama Crimson Tide at No. 7 Indiana Hoosiers
Jalen Milroe runs for a touchdown in the second half at Tiger Stadium. Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images
Alabama College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 10
Alabama 2024 Record: 7-2 overall, 4-2 SEC
Indiana College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 5
Indiana 2024 Record: 10-0 overall, 7-0 Big Ten
Imagine for a moment Alabama makes the playoff but has to go on the road to a snowy Memorial Stadium in Bloomington. We’re getting ahead of ourselves, sure, but fans would never forget such a matchup. Alabama moved up one spot from last week’s CFP rankings after crushing LSU behind Jalen Milroe’s four touchdown runs and a smothering defense. The Crimson Tide’s remaining schedule features a quality Football Championship Subdivision opponent, Mercer (No. 9 in the FCS rankings), a road trip to Oklahoma and their Iron Bowl showdown with Auburn at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Indiana has been the biggest surprise in the Big Ten and college football. The Hoosiers survived a close call at home against Michigan over the weekend and have a bye this Saturday before heading to Columbus to face Ohio State. The Hoosiers would be in with a win against the Buckeyes, but even a competitive loss would keep them in the playoff conversation.
Squirrel White celebrates with Dylan Sampson against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium. Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
Tennessee College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 7
Tennessee 2024 Record: 8-1 overall, 5-1 SEC
Notre Dame College Football Playoff Ranking: No. 8
Notre Dame 2024 Record: 8-1 overall
Notre Dame’s stunning 16-14 loss to Northern Illinois will not be enough to keep Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish out of the playoff field. Riley Leonard has led Notre Dame to quality wins over Texas A&M and Louisville. Outside of that Week 2 loss, the Irish have dominated the rest of the teams on their schedule, including last week’s 52-3 beat down of Florida State.
As for Tennessee, the committee moved Indiana ahead of Nico Iamaleava and the Vols despite their win over Mississippi State. Tennessee faces Georgia Saturday in Athens in what should be a must-win game for both teams.
On the Bubble/First Four Out
Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
Georgia Bulldogs, SMU Mustangs, Texas A&M Aggies, Kansas State Wildcats
No one envisioned preseason No. 1 Georgia would be on the outside looking in by November, but Carson Beck continues to struggle and the Bulldogs have a three-score loss on their résumé. A loss to Tennessee at home this weekend would devastate the Bulldogs’ playoff hopes.
CFP Quarterfinals
Rose Bowl: No. 1 Oregon Ducks vs. 8/9 Winner
Sugar Bowl: No. 2 Texas Longhorns vs. 7/10 Winner
Fiesta Bowl: No. 3 BYU Cougars vs. 6/11 Winner
Peach Bowl: No. 4 Miami Hurricanes vs. 5/12 Winner
SEC analyst believes the Georgia Bulldogs are in must win game against Tennessee
After the Georgia Bulldogs’ 28-10 loss to Ole Miss, Georgia has a lot on the line coming into this game. According to SEC football analyst Paul Finebaum, that could include their chance at the College Football Playoff.
“They’re a program that has been up and down this year,” explained Finebaum on Saturday Down South, “For the first time, they are now in a Playoff eliminator at home against Tennessee. It’s a monster game.”
Georgia suffered their second loss of the season against Ole Miss last Saturday, the first one against Alabama. It doubled as their second SEC loss of the year, and with Texas A&M and Texas only having one SEC loss. Ole Miss and Alabama are tied with Georgia with two losses. Georgia is in no-mans land for the SEC championship race.
If they were to lose to No. 6 Tennessee, they’ll have three losses, and, since 2020, only two teams with three losses have been in the top 12 after Week 14.
Currently, Georgia has a 74% chance to make the postseason, according to ESPN, but they currently have a 61.8% of winning the Tennessee game right now, and if they lose, they’ll be in the pool of three-loss teams in the SEC.
LSU and South Carolina have less than a 14% chance at making the playoff and even two-loss team Texas A&M has just a 14.3% chance too. With a loss versus Tennessee, Georgia could see themselves out of the top 12 rankings since 2017, Kirby Smart’s second year as head coach.
Ohio State remained at No. 2 in the latest College Football Playoff Rankings. Here’s a playoff picture for the Buckeyes. #GoBucks
We’re now eleven weeks into the college football season and that means we have an idea of where Ohio State when it comes to the landscape of the 2024 season. The Buckeyes beatPenn State on the road two weeks ago to boost its resumé and remain right in the thick of things, even after the loss to now No. 1 Oregon a few weeks ago.
Ohio State debuted at No. 2 when the first College Football Playoff rankings were announced last week, so even another loss would seem to have OSU in good shape with getting an invite to the inaugural 12-team playoff we’re all about to witness at the end of this season. The Buckeyes stayed in that spot when the latest CFP rankings were unveiled on Tuesday.
The format is an interesting one, and since it’s the first year of all the fun, we thought we break down where Ohio State would be in the playoff bracket if it were to end before any further games are played.
So … here we go.
College Football Playoff bracket: Who’s in, who’s out
First-round byes as conference champion automatic qualifiers
For the first time, there will be 12 teams participating in the College Football Playoff. There are five automatic bids for each of the Power Four conference champions and one to the highest-ranked Group of Five champion. The remaining seven slots are given to the seven at-large teams.
When next College Football Playoff rankings come out
Tuesday, Nov. 19: 7 p.m. ET
Tuesday, Nov. 26: 8 p.m. ET
Tuesday, Dec. 3: 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, Dec. 8: Noon ET
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Ohio State football has one of the best resumes in the nation, and despite coming in at No. 2, it still is void of a first-round bye.
While Tuesday is exciting because college hoops fans get to take in the Champions Classic, the College Football Playoff results after this past week were released after the first of two basketball games on ESPN.
Ohio State football, as expected, stayed at No. 2. It still won’t have a first-round bye if the season ended today since only conference champions get a bye, and technically, as of now, Oregon is in that spot as it among the handful of undefeated teams remaining.
The Buckeyes were among four top-six Big Ten teams with Indiana coming in at No. 5 and Penn State at No. 4. Here’s a showing the entire 12-team bracket.
The Buckeyes have Indiana and Michigan still on their resume, and they could have another battle with Oregon in the Big Ten title game before the final CFP release is made.
That along with major shaking up of the SEC teams with Tennessee and Georgia battling this weekend could factor into where teams eventually fall in the rankings.
This is a good gauge of where teams are at, but one shouldn’t expect it is the final result as there’s three weeks left in the regular season then conference championship battles to follow.
Indiana still can’t get much respect from the playoff committee
The second College Football Playoff rankings dropped on Tuesday night with Oregon retaining its status as the No. 1 team in the country ahead of No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Texas.
Yet the playoff picture suddenly feels a lot less clear than it did a week ago following Week 11 losses from Miami (Fla.) and Georgia.
Let’s walk through some of the biggest winners and losers from the second rankings.
A reminder: the top four power conference winners and the highest-ranked Group of 5 teams are all guaranteed a spot. The final seven seeds are essentially decided by the committee.
Winner: Colorado
(Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
A week after the committee seemingly told the Big 12 it was only getting one team in the playoff, here comes the Buffaloes to challenge the narrative. Up three spots to No. 17 in this week’s rankings, Colorado controls its own destiny with remaining games against Utah, Kansas and Oklahoma State. None of those are cakewalks, but the Buffs will be favored in each matchup.
If both Colorado and BYU are undefeated heading into the Big 12 championship game, would the committee favor a one-loss conference runner-up over a two-loss SEC or Big Ten team?
Let’s hope we find get to out.
Loser: Indiana
(Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
If you thought the disrespect for Indiana was bad last week when the committee ranked the Hoosiers No. 9, what can you say about what the committee did this week to the 10-0 Hoosiers? The committee moved IU up to No. 5 in the rankings, but that means they’d be facing No. 10 Alabama in the first round of the playoff.
Will that end up happening? Probably not, but that’s a rough draw even in theory. Especially when you see a pair of one-loss teams in Penn State and Ohio State are ranked ahead of Indiana.
No. 2 Ohio State would currently draw a home game against No. 12 Boise State. Thankfully the Buckeyes and Hoosiers will meet on November 23 to settle this once and for all.
Winner: Mizzou
Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Head coach Eli Drinkwitz was mocked a bit for talking about the Tigers keeping their playoff chances alive, but uh, he wasn’t exactly wrong. Clocking in at No. 23, Mizzou technically has a chance to get into the field of 12.
That in itself is worth celebrating after nearly blowing its season at home against a dilapidated Oklahoma team. Anyone who moves up in the rankings after a game like that deserves a pat on the back.
Loser: Georgia
(Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images)
If a two-loss SEC team is getting left out, it sure seems like No. 12 Georgia is the best candidate.
Despite the fact the Bulldogs still have to play Tennessee and Georgia Tech, even winning out might not be enough to keep them in the playoff considering they’re on the outside now. The Group of Five requirement is keeping No. 13 Boise State in the playoff and the Bulldogs the first team out.
The Bulldogs need three dominant wins just to have chance at pleading its case to the committee at the end of the season.
Winner: Ole Miss
Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
A week ago the Rebels were just hanging on the playoff picture. Now Lane Kiffin’s program is up to No. 11 and has arguably the best path through the bracket.
As it stands, Ole Miss would travel to No. 6 Penn State in the first round, where the toughest aspect may be the home field advantage. The Rebels have the No. 2 offense in the country while Penn State ranks No. 22. The winner of that game would face No. 3 BYU — and a Cougars offense that ranks No. 56 in the FBS — on neural ground.
If you’re Ole Miss, you take your chances with an offense like the Rebels’ and a matchup like those.
Swinney and the Tigers move up in latest CFP rankings.
The College Football Playoff Selection Committee has released its second set of rankings, and Clemson football’s moved up to No. 20 following a 24-14 win over Virginia Tech.
Starting at No. 23 in last week’s CFP rankings, the Tigers’ latest rise highlights their slim but possible playoff path. ESPN’s Playoff Predictor now gives Clemson a 17% chance of making the CFP, climbing to 46% if they win out. They’re also given a 19% chance to reach the ACC Championship, though Clemson’s spot in the 12-team playoff depends on Miami or SMU slipping up in the coming weeks.
The new playoff format is designed to include the five highest-ranked conference champions and seven additional teams, providing flexibility for top-performing programs to secure a playoff position. Clemson currently trails Miami, the ACC’s top team, but an at-large slot remains feasible. As they gear up to face Pittsburgh this week and later matchups with Wake Forest and Syracuse, Clemson’s chances hinge on maintaining their momentum while counting on rivals’ losses to help them climb.
T
his inaugural 12-team playoff setup has a unique structure: the top four conference champions get first-round byes, and teams ranked fifth through twelfth will play first-round games at campus sites. The New Year’s Six bowls will host the quarterfinal and semifinal matchups, with the national title game set for January 20 at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Clemson has some work to do and some luck needed to make it.
Tennessee will play at Georgia on Saturday in Week 12. The SEC matchup will have College Football Playoff implications.
Below is information regarding the College Football Playoff rankings and bracket projection after Week 11 during the 2024 regular-season.
College Football Playoff bracket: Who’s in, who’s out
Below are the top 12 teams entering Week 12.
Oregon
Ohio State
Texas
Penn State
Indiana
BYU
Tennessee
Notre Dame
Miami
Alabama
Ole Miss
Georgia
The entire College Football Playoff top 25 rankings can be viewed here.
Tennessee’s projected CFP opponent
The Vols are projected as a No. 8 seed. Tennessee is also projected to host No. 9 seed Notre Dame in the first-round of the College Football Playoff at Neyland Stadium.
How many teams in College Football Playoff 2024?
For the first time, there will be 12 teams participating in the College Football Playoff. There are five automatic bids for each of the Power Four conference champions and one to the highest-ranked Group of Five champion. The remaining seven slots are given to seven at-large teams.
When next College Football Playoff rankings come out
