CFP Committee Still Likes Buckeyes More Than Wolverines In Latest Rankings

The second College Football Playoff rankings were released on Tuesday night and the Buckeyes were once again ranked No. 2 overall. Georgia jumped to No. 1 by virtue of last week’s win over previous No. 1 Tennessee. The Vols dropped to No. 4. Michigan jumped up one spot to No. 3 and they were followed by TCU at No. 4.

Following the release, CFP committee chair Boo Corrigan took part in a teleconference with reporters to discuss the committee’s thoughts on why they ranked the teams the way they did.

The highlights of everything that Corrigan had to say can be found below, as can the full rankings from the second College Football Playoff committee.

• Is Ohio State still getting consideration at No. 1? There was consideration given to everyone, but as they got more into it, Georgia’s decisive win was the reason they were No. 1. “We felt that Georgia separated.”
• What went into the decision to keep Tennessee at No. 5? You look at the Alabama and LSU wins, and the Kentucky win. “We do value wins.” TCU has six wins over .500. Georgia played very well defensively against the Tennessee offense. “It was incredibly impressive.”
• How much does the committee look at margin of defeat of common opponents, i.e. Oregon and Tennessee vs. Georgia. It’s not about the number of points, you look at the overall game and the flow of the game. You evaluate the big picture, as opposed to a late score or early score. The committee believes both of those wins for Georgia were “one sided.”
• When you evaluated Ohio State, how much did the weather factor in? They look at all of the different factors, whether it’s injuries or coaches not being available or weather. It was a topic of discussion, just as everything else is to make sure they understand all of the factors.
• Clemson dropped to No. 10. Did you overvalue Clemson or was this a response to how they looked against Notre Dame. This was based on the game against Notre Dame and how it went. Clemson has had some quality wins, but this game was the main factor in dropping to No. 10.
• What is separating Tennessee from Oregon? The wins over Alabama, LSU, and Kentucky. With Oregon, you have eight straight wins, including a win over UCLA, but Tennessee’s wins are better.
• Do quality wins get judged differently week to week as records change? They look at the body of work as a whole each week. They use a clean sheet every week and dive as deep as they can and on as many levels as they can.
• How does the committee view Notre Dame? Boo Corrigan was recused when ND was discussed because his brother-in-law is the ND lacrosse coach. The wins over Clemson, North Carolina, and Syracuse, along with winning six of seven games is what he was told regarding ND’s ranking.
• Was the LSU vs. Oregon discussion close? LSU’s wins the last couple of week has played in strongly the last couple of weeks. Oregon since their loss and how well Bo Nix is playing at QB, it’s an impressive team. They look at everything they can find, including watching the games, so that they can ensure a full evaluation.
• A question about Liberty being in the discussion? There was a good deal of discussion around Liberty this week with their win over Arkansas. Strength of schedule does play into it.
• How close are Ohio State and Michigan? The win over Rutgers, the second half in particular, was noted. Ohio State has a win over Notre Dame that helps them here. They both have top 10 scoring offenses and scoring defenses. The non-conference schedule for Michigan “has been a factor.”
• How much are they taking future conference championship games into account? They don’t look forward to future weeks. They only look at the week they are in. “We leave the projecting to other people.”
• How did Florida State get in? “You start the season with that win…over LSU.” They have played a difficult ACC schedule. Their defense is giving up less than 20 points per game. They had a good win over Miami (author’s note: I think he was serious).
• Is Michigan where they are because of what they’ve done and what teams around them haven’t done? It’s a combination of both. You can’t look at one team without looking at the teams around them. That’s how you compare things.
• Back to the Tennessee and Oregon debate: You mentioned Georgia had control of the Tennessee game, but do you factor in Tennessee’s 3-0 lead in the first quarter and do you factor in the rain? They factor in everything. The game is 60 minutes long.
• Is Liberty’s strength of schedule a factor in them not being ranked? It is certainly one of the factors as they look at the body of work.
• Regarding USC and UCLA, why is USC the higher ranked team? The one-point loss for USC at Utah is referenced. UCLA’s loss by 15 at Oregon is also noted when comparing the two of them.

College Football Playoff Rankings

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