In one of the wildest college football seasons in history, we have a clear top four heading into championship weekend—but we’ve seen how quickly things can change.
1. Georgia Bulldogs (12-0) | Last week: 1
Following a second consecutive undefeated regular season in the SEC, Georgia did not look past in-state rival Georgia Tech with the conference championship game on deck. The Bulldogs won, 37-14, with a balanced attack and good showing on both sides of the ball. Georgia running back Kenny McIntosh has been playing very well late in the season, and he just led the Dawgs in both rushing (12 carries, 86 yards, one touchdown) and receiving (two receptions for 96 yards).
2. Michigan Wolverines (12-0) | Last week: 2
And to think the geniuses in the media clamored for Jim Harbaugh to be fired from Michigan. It’s taken time to build a legitimate powerhouse in the Big Ten, but Harbaugh’s Wolverines have done it, becoming the vastly superior team to the Buckeyes in their past two matchups. While Blake Corum was banged up at running back, the reliable Donovan Edwards broke two long touchdown runs late and racked up 216 yards in Columbus. Both Georgia and Michigan should have CFP spots locked up no matter what happens in their conference championship games.
3. TCU Horned Frogs (12-0) | Last week: 4 (+1)
Maybe the same can’t be said for TCU, but the Horned Frogs deserve a ton of credit and recognition for completing a 12-0 regular season. It included thrilling victories but was capped by a thrashing of Iowa State last week. Things will get extremely interesting if No. 3 or No. 4 lose this week, but TCU can take care of business and 100% lock up a playoff spot with a win over Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship.
4. USC Trojans (11-1) | Last week: 5 (+1)
Likely Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams dazzled as much as ever in USC’s Saturday night win against Notre Dame, and the Trojans are certainly in a win-and-in scenario when they face Utah again in the Pac-12 title game on Friday. The USC defense has had issues at time this season, but they’re forcing turnovers—and Lincoln Riley’s offense lights it up nearly every time they touch the field.
5. Alabama Crimson Tide (10-2) | Last week: 8 (+3)
Alabama handled rival Auburn in the Iron Bowl to get to 10-2, getting Nick Saban’s program to double-digit wins for the 15th consecutive season, which is simply insane. Now, the Crimson Tide will wait and see what happens this weekend, and we think that if TCU or USC were to fall out of the top four, it should undoubtedly be Alabama—after looking like they were out of the CFP mix—that re-joins. Their two losses came at the very end of games on the road in the tough SEC, and the Tennessee loss included a questionable pass interference call that changed the game.
6. Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1) | Last week: 3 (-3)
We were puzzled when Ohio State began the initial College Football Playoff rankings at No. 1, and we continued to not understand why they were consistently ranked over a Michigan team that’s looked better for most of the season. The Buckeyes are plenty talented and have had tremendous success as a program over the years, but the unquestioned “eye test” results haven’t been there often in 2022. Losing badly at home to your rival the way the Buckeyes did should keep them out of the CFP, but we’ll see if they are kept above Alabama tonight.
7. Penn State Nittany Lions (10-2) | Last week: 10 (+3)
This was a funny viral moment from Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford, but in all seriousness he and others leaving the program had a dream-like final game at Beaver Stadium. Clifford is in his sixth and final season with the Nittany Lions program, and he threw four touchdowns in his final home game to help his team get to 10-2 and a likely New Year’s Six bowl.
8. Tennessee Volunteers (10-2) | Last week: NR
The ground game for Tennessee was on fire against Vanderbilt:
Jaylen Wright: five carries, 160 yards, two touchdowns
Dylan Sampson: 12 carries, 131 yards, one touchdown
Jabari Small: 11 carries 79 yards, two touchdowns
It was nice to see Hendon Hooker on the sideline supporting Joe Milton and his team:
Joe Milton 🤝 Hendon Hooker
You love to see it 🧡 @Vol_Football pic.twitter.com/AQ4ImJ3uL4
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) November 27, 2022
9. Clemson Tigers (10-2) | Last week: 6 (-3)
The passing offense for Clemson remained off against South Carolina, and it made it difficult to hold their lead after a 14-0 first quarter. Both an all-time great 40-game home winning streak and playoff hopes were dashed in the loss. However, in what has been a parity-filled college football season, the Tigers have put together another strong year with a shot at the ACC title on Saturday.
10. Washington Huskies (10-2) | Last week: NR
The two-game losing streak to UCLA and Arizona State in middle of the season hurt—if they were able to win just one of them they’d arguably be in the CFP race right now—but Washington has had a fantastic season in their first year under Kalen DeBoer. Transfer quarterback Michael Penix Jr. led the nation in passing yards during the regular season and has flown under the radar as one of the best players in America.