COLUMBUS — Ohio State football enjoyed a drama-free week in the College Football Playoff rankings as its most dramatic week of the season draws near.
The Buckeyes remained No. 2 in the updated rankings, as they were in the first two weeks. The entire top five remained unchanged, including No. 1 Georgia, No. 3 Michigan, No. 4 TCU and No. 5 Tennessee.
No. 2 may be Ohio State’s ceiling, depending on what the Bulldogs do. After playing at Maryland on Saturday, OSU plays No. 3 Michigan in the regular season finale. However, if it wins that game, it will very likely face an unranked opponent in the Big Ten championship game and will likely be a heavy betting favorite.
Georgia plays at previously ranked Kentucky on Saturday and finishes against Georgia Tech. Barring a huge upset in either of those games, it will face new No. 6 LSU in the SEC championship game.
Michigan likely can only pass OSU by beating it head to head. No. 4 TCU has a few ranked victories but has not been given the same credit for its overall performance by the committee that OSU has.
Ohio State’s past resume may also not improve considerably in the final two weeks. Penn State moved up three spots to No. 11 and Notre Dame improved two spots to No. 18. Those are the Buckeyes’ only two ranked wins.
WEEK 12 COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF RANKINGS
1. Georgia
2. Ohio State
3. Michigan
4. TCU
5. Tennessee
6. LSU
7. USC
8. Alabama
9. Clemson
10. Utah
11. Penn State
12. Oregon
13. North Carolina
14. Ole Miss
15. Kansas State
16. UCLA
17. Washington
18. Notre Dame
19. Florida State
20. UCF
21. Tulane
22. Oklahoma State
23. Oregon State
24. N.C. State
25. Cincinnati
