US LBM Coaches Poll: Texas A&M recommended for 2nd place
USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg explains the latest US LBM coaches poll and why Texas A&M is in second place ahead of Indiana.
There was some uncertainty in this season’s first College Football Playoff rankings. The second announcement on Tuesday, Nov. 11 had fewer unknowns, and Ohio State was expected to maintain the No. 1 spot.
The defending champion Buckeyes finished the regular season undefeated and are three games away from qualifying for the Big Ten title game. Right behind them is conference rival Indiana. The Hoosiers, also undefeated, remained in second place after a thrilling win over Penn State in the closing minutes.
Texas A&M, the only undefeated team in the bowl district, remains in third place after an impressive road win over Missouri State. The Aggies are followed by SEC rivals Alabama and Georgia, making it the same top five as last week.
However, there was a change in the second half of the top 10.
Texas Tech moved up two spots to No. 6, defeating previously unbeaten Brigham Young and establishing itself as the Big 12 championship favorite, dropping the Cougars five spots to No. 12 before jumping past Mississippi State for No. 6. Oregon State moved up to No. 8 after a narrow road loss to Iowa. Notre Dame and Texas moved up one spot into the top 10.
In the competition among Group 5 conference teams, South Florida, representing the United States, is in 24th place. The Bulls are the only representative of this group in the top 25. The highest ranked champions in these conferences are guaranteed a spot.
This ranking is the second of six published by the committee. The next three will be published every Tuesday until the final release on Sunday, December 7th, when the 12 teams in the field and playoff bracket will be announced.
CFP ranking top 25
- Ohio State University (9-0)
- Indiana (10-0)
- Texas A&M (9-0)
- Alabama (8-1)
- Georgia (8-1)
- Texas Tech (9-1)
- Mississippi State (9-1)
- Oregon State (8-1)
- Notre Dame (7-2)
- Texas (7-2)
- Oklahoma (7-2)
- Brigham Young (8-1)
- Utah (7-2)
- Vanderbilt (8-2)
- Miami (7-2)
- Georgia Tech (8-1)
- Southern California (7-2)
- Michigan (7-2)
- Virginia (8-2)
- Louisville (7-2)
- Iowa State (6-3)
- Pittsburgh (7-2)
- Tennessee (6-3)
- South Florida (7-2)
- Cincinnati (7-2)
How will the College Football Playoff go based on rankings?
first round
No. 12 South Florida vs. No. 5 Georgia
No. 11 Miami vs. No. 6 Texas Tech
10th place Texas vs. 7th place Mississippi
9th place Notre Dame, 8th place Oregon State
quarterfinals
No. 4 Alabama vs. Georgia – South Florida winner
No. 3 Winner of Texas A&M vs. Texas Tech Miami
2nd Place Winner of Indiana vs. Mississippi-Texas
Winner of No. 1 Ohio State vs. Notre Dame, Oregon
What is the College Football Playoff schedule?
The format of this year’s playoffs has been changed so that the champions of the four highest-rated teams in the conference are no longer guaranteed first-round byes, as they were last season in the first year of the 12-team system. The committee will seed all qualifying teams, including the top five conference champions, and then the top four teams will receive byes, regardless of league.
The on-campus first-round schedule will see No. 5 play No. 12, No. 6 play No. 11, No. 7 play No. 10 and No. 8 play No. 9.
The winners of these games will advance to the quarterfinals, which will be played at the Cotton Bowl on December 31st. The remaining four games in the round will be played on January 1st, with the Orange Bowl starting that day, followed by the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl. The Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl will hold semifinals on January 8th and January 9th, respectively.
The championship game will be held on January 19th at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
