Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe regained his starting spot and put together a string of impressive efforts to answer the critics. He had 644 yards of offense and 10 touchdowns in that span, including six scores in Saturday’s 49-21 rout of Kentucky. Milroe had led Alabama to another West Division title, an achievement that looked shaky after that 34-24 loss to the Longhorns in September. That still didn’t move Alabama up from number eight in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Georgia, by contrast, has moved up to number one in the College Football Playoff rankings, nudging past Ohio State, with third-place Michigan and fourth-place Florida State holding their spots in the top four. Georgia had maybe its most impressive performance of the season Saturday, beating Mississippi 52-17. It was the second straight week the Bulldogs defeated a ranked opponent, after downing Missouri the game before. Washington was fifth again, followed by Oregon, Texas and Alabama. Missouri at nine and Louisville were new to the top 10 this week.
Selection committee chairman Boo Corrigan, the athletic director at North Carolina State, said Missouri's big win last week against Tennessee helped bolster Georgia's case for number one.
"Active, strong debate in the room," Corrigan said of choosing between Georgia and Ohio State.
Michigan is also coming off its first victory against a ranked team. The Wolverines won 24-15 at Penn State, but couldn't pass Big Ten rival Ohio State. They will play the Buckeyes at home on Nov. 25.
The top eight teams in the rankings won last week, and the selection committee's only changes among that group were at the very top.
Washington (10-0) was fifth again, followed by Oregon (9-1), Texas (9-1) and Alabama (9-1).
Missouri (8-2) at nine and Louisville (9-1) were new to the top 10 this week.
No team with two losses has ever made the College Football Playoff, and only one team from the Group of Five has made the final top four — Cincinnati in 2021.
Using that as a measuring stick, there appear to be nine teams in playoff contention: The top eight plus Louisville.
There are three rankings left, including the last one on Dec. 3 that will set the field for the final four-team playoff before the event expands to 12 teams next year.
