COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF RANKINGS WK 15 PROJECTION

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF RANKINGS

The CFB Now college football playoff rankings have been 100% accurate on predicting the 12 teams that the committee would place in the 12 team college football playoff bracket. Things have become extremely complicated and as stated earlier in the season, I believed that the SEC would "eat itself alive" this year and potentially knock some deserving programs out of the 12 team college football playoff bracket. When it comes to rankings, it is extremely hard to simply glance by head to head match-ups and strength of schedule, as some top 25 squads were exposed later in the season when faced with a top 25 opponent. Let it be known, that College Football Now was the only top 25 rankings to feature Arizona State and South Carolina in our top 25 rankings preseason and much earlier than the rest of the nation. 

12 TEAM CFP BRACKET

The CFP committee will decide the 12 team CFP bracket and we can now make an extremely valid case for CFB playoff expansion, as a 16 team playoff would be sufficient with the parity that has been displayed in the world of college football now! So let's take a look at how things could play out and the scenarios that will weigh heavy on the CFP committees mind following championship weekend.  

1. OREGON DUCKS (12-0)

Coach Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks will be in the College Football Playoff and will face off against Penn State in the Big 12 championship for a potential number one seed in the 2024 college football playoff. The Ducks early season victory over top 25 ranked Boise State and their victories over top 25 ranked opponents Ohio State & Illinois give them one of the best resume's in all of college football. Their 38 to 17 victory over Michigan also now holds more weight with the committee as the Wolverines were able to win "the game" against the Ohio State Buckeyes. 

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2. TEXAS LONGHORNS (11-1)

The Longhorns will face-off against the Dawgs of Georgia in the SEC championship game after toppling in-state rivals Texas A&M this past weekend and will be looking to avenge their only loss of the season, as the Dawgs beat the Longhorns 30 to 15 on October 19th, 2024. Their early season victory over the Wolverines helped strengthen their resume with their win over Ohio State and the big win over Texas A&M has the Longhorns in a locked position for this year's 2024 college football playoff 12 team bracket! Check out the next Texas Longhorns standout defensemen Zelus Hicks recruiting profile by clicking HERE!

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3. PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (11-1)

Penn State suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Buckeyes by a score of 20 to 13 in Happy Valley, but will play for the Big 10 championship against Oregon as the Buckeyes suffered their 2nd loss of the season. If Penn State were to beat Oregon, they could potentially snag the number one seed for this year's 2024 CFP 12 team bracket, but should also be a lock win or lose this Saturday. 

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4. NOTRE DAME FIGHTING-IRISH (11-1)

The Notre Dame Fighting-Irish are college football playoff bound after defeating USC by a score of 49 to 35 this past weekend and boast key top 25 victories over Army and Navy, as well as Texas A&M in week one. But, the victory that particularly stands out is the 31 to 13 victory over a Georgia Tech squad who took the Georgia Bulldogs down to the wire in a 8 overtime slug-fest. Notre Dame is one of the hottest team's in the nation after suffering a crushing blow to Northern Illinois earlier in the season and have since won 10 games straight heading into the 2024 college football playoff 12 team bracket! 

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5. GEORGIA BULLDOGS (10-2)

The Georgia Dawgs faithful were on the edge of their seats this past weekend, as the Dawgs barely scooted past their rivals from the ACC in Georgia Tech. Which brings me to the parity in the world of College Football Now and why SEC dominance is still a factor, but not as much as it used to be in context to the rest of the nation. With that being said, the stigma at play has the Dawgs rightfully ranked 5th nationally, as they crushed ACC championship bound Clemson 34 to 3 in week one and defeated 2nd ranked Texas 30 to 15, while boasting another top 25 victory over the 6th ranked Tennessee Volunteers. If the Dawgs were to be defeated by Texas, I still believe they will find themselves somewhere in the 12 team CFP bracket, but it could be at the expense of one of the hottest programs in all of college football today! 

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6. TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS (10-2)

The Tennessee Volunteers will be in the 12 team college football playoff bracket, as they survived the gauntlet in the SEC and toppled Alabama earlier in the season by a score of 24 to 17. Their only losses came at the hands of top 10 ranked Georgia and a very good Arkansas Razorbacks team and they handled business against a Vanderbilt team who upset Bama. All in all, the Vols are one of the most talented squads on paper and are capable of competing at a high level in the 12 team CFP bracket, but their resume only boasts one top 25 victory over Alabama. They do play a very tough schedule which has led to them being another lock in this year's 2024 college football playoff 12 team bracket! Check out 2023 Scout Trout All-American & Tennessee LB Jeremiah Telander's high school recruiting profile & live scouting report by clicking HERE!

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7. SMU MUSTANGS (11-1)

The SMU Mustangs find themselves in the ACC championship game in their fist season in Atlantic Coast Conference play and will take on the Clemson Tigers this weekend for the right to earn a first round bye in the 2024 CFP 12 team bracket! The Mustangs made a QB change earlier in the season from Preston Stone to Kevin Jennings and have never looked back, as they have been on a tear offensively all season long. The Mustangs only loss of the season came at the hands of top 25 ranked BYU, but they currently do not have any top 25 victories on their schedule. They have produced over 30 points per game in every contest besides one and that game went to overtime against a highly talented Duke football team and defeated the likes of former top 25 ranked Pittsburgh & Louisville. Which begs to question, if SMU is to fall to Clemson do they still get in the 12 team CFP bracket or does a team like South Carolina leap frog them into the 2024 college football playoff? Check out the future QB of SMU football Tyler Aronson's live football scouting report & recruiting profile by clicking HERE!

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8. BOISE STATE BRONCOS (11-1)

The Boise State Broncos only loss of the season was to the top ranked Oregon Ducks by a score of 37 to 34, after defeating a very good Georgia Southern team in week one. Since then, the Broncos have won 10 straight and could potentially see running back Ashton Jeanty bring home the 2024 Heisman Trophy. They have one top 25 victory over in conference foe UNLV, who they will face off against in the Mountain West Conference championship Friday night in hopes of locking up a potential first round bye into the quarterfinal round. It appears, that this MWC championship match-up will serve as a play-in game, as the UNLV Rebels are the next highest ranked non-power four team and with a win over Boise State, would earn a bid to the 2024 CFP 12 team bracket. Simply put, whoever wins, is in. 

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9. OHIO STATE BUCKEYES (10-2)

I think the Ohio State Buckeyes are in, as they boast two top 10 victories over Penn State & Indiana, but recently fell to an unranked Michigan Wolverines squad at home. Their other loss came at the hands of the top ranked Oregon Ducks in a game that potentially could have been won by the Buckeyes if their QB slid just a half a second earlier. Which begs to question, will the committee keep the Hoosiers in the 12 team college football playoff? Who were absolutely destroyed by the Ohio State Buckeyes and have one of the lowest rated strength of schedules nationally over a team like South Carolina or Ole Miss, who ran the gauntlet of the SEC and have suffered three losses? 

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10. INDIANA HOOSIERS (11-1)

It is going to be extremely hard for the committee to fully justify keeping the 11 & 1 Indiana Hoosiers out of the 12 team CFP bracket, as their only loss of the season came against the only top 25 opponent they have faced all season long. It came at the hands of the Ohio State Buckeyes, who just lost to the Michigan Wolverines, so one could say that could weigh that as a top 25 victory. With that being said, the Hoosiers have looked borderline unstoppable offensively all season long and have one of the toughest defenses nationally, which makes them not playing in the Big 10 championship as an 11 win Big 10 squad unfortunate and why they possibly could still sneak in the 2024 CFP 12 team bracket. 

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11. ALABAMA CRIMSON-TIDE (9-3)

Here are where things get interesting, as I do not see how a 24 to 3 loss to Oklahoma didn't move Bama down further in the CFP rankings, as they also lost to an unranked Vanderbilt team by a score of 40 to 35. Bama's other loss came at the hands of the CFP bound Vols, which currently gives them three losses on the season, but beat CFP bound Georgia and the current hottest team in America South Carolina Gamecocks by a score of 27 to 25 on October 12th. They dismantled the top 25 ranked Missouri Tigers by a score of 34 to 0 and trampled all over a very talented LSU team by a score of 42 to 13. This makes the Crimson-Tide currently 3 & 1 against top 25 opponents on the season and they had to endure through one of the toughest schedules in the nation. 

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2024-2025 CFP TOP 25 RANKINGS

The College Football Now 2024-2025 CFP top 25 rankings 12 through 19 can be found below of 2024-2025 CFP top 25 team's in contention for a CFP 12 team bracket bid!

12. OLE MISS REBELS (9-3)

The Ole Miss Rebels have truly had an up & down season running through the gauntlet that is the Southeastern Football Conference and beat Oklahoma by a score of 26 to 14 on Oct 26th, 2024. They also toppled Arkansas who beat CFP bound Tennessee, trampled the South Carolina Gamecocks 27 to 3 on Oct 5th, 2024 and decimated the Georgia Bulldogs by a score of 28 to 10. The fact of the matter is that Ole Miss is undefeated against top 25 opponents, but suffered losses at LSU and Florida and were defeated at home earlier in the season by a very talented Kentucky squad. Alabama recently was destroyed by the same Oklahoma team that Ole Miss took out back to the wood shed and defeated 26 to 14 and also were able to defeat the CFP bound Georgia Bulldogs by a score of 28 to 10! I do know that the LSU game is standing out to the committee as the potential tie-breaker between Bama and Ole Miss, as Bama beat LSU 42 to 13 and Ole Miss was defeated by the Tigers 29 to 26, but it has to be tough to potentially leave such a talented ball club out of this years 12 team CFP bracket. 

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13. SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS (9-3)

​The South Carolina Gamecocks started out the season with wins over Old Dominion & Kentucky and then fell 36 to 33 to LSU and then beat Akron, only to fall to Ole Miss & Alabama in back to back weeks. But, ever since the 27 to 25 loss at Alabama, the Gamecocks have been by far the hottest team in all of CFB, as they went on to defeat Oklahoma, top 25 ranked Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, top 25 ranked Missouri and FCS opponent Wofford. South Carolina then came up against a 12th ranked Clemson team and were able to defeat their in-state rivals by a score of 17 to 14. Even though South Carolina fell to both Alabama and Ole Miss, I could still see them sneaking into the 12 team CFP bracket with a Clemson ACC victory, as this would give the Gamecocks a victory over a CFP 12 team bracket bound ball-club. South Carolina beat Vanderbilt, who beat Alabama, but only defeated Missouri by a score of 34 to 30, as Bama was able to shutout the Tigers. Given this scenario that has presented itself in the SEC, wouldn't expanding to a 16 team CFP bracket make absolute sense? As Ole Miss, Alabama and South Carolina all seem deserving at this point in the 2024 college football season. Check out Scout Trout All-American Jalon Kilgore's live scouting report & recruiting profile by clicking HERE! 

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14. ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS (10-2)

The Arizona State Sun Devils were in our preseason top 25 rankings at College Football Now and have lived up to their initial ranking, as they will play this Saturday for the Big 12 championship against Iowa State for the right to a first round buy in the CFP 12 team bracket! Former Scout Trout & FCS All-American Myles Rowser has helped anchor the Sun Devils defense from the defensive secondary, which has helped lead to key top 25 victories over the likes of Kansas State and BYU. The Sun Devils must win the Big 12 championship to get into the 12 team CFP bracket, as their two losses to unranked opponents in the Big 12 would potentially keep them from breaking past the gauntlet of SEC team's that are vying for a playoff bid. The future is bright in Tempe, Arizona as Kaleb Black, Korbin Hendrix and Nikko Klemm will be immediate impact players next season and beyond for Sun Devils nation. 

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15. MIAMI HURRICANES (10-2)

The Miami Hurricanes have been in extremely closely contested match-ups this season and even in victory, had many questioning whether the Canes were going to be able to earn a CFP 12 team bracket bid. Now that the Canes have lost to Georgia Tech and were beaten by Syracuse, which knocked them out of the ACC championship, i do not visibly see a path forward, but that is up for the committee to decide and thankfully so. The Canes do have one of the hardest working recruits of all-time on their roster in Trent Scheuerman, who the future appears very bright for. Miami had a remarkable turnaround under coach Mario Cristobal and have improved drastically under his tutelage. Many believe the Canes still have a legit chance tonight on the ESPN CFP rankings show and I believe the Canes are well deserving after two minor blemishes on the season, as there is only one undefeated team remaining in the world of CFB and only a handful of one loss teams. 

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16. IOWA STATE CYCLONES (10-2) 

The Iowa State Cyclones earned a trip to the Big 12 championship to take on Arizona State after earning their first top 25 victory of the season over the Kansas State Wildcats. Their two losses came recently to unranked Texas Tech (who beat Arizona State) and the Kansas Jayhawks, who recently also upset the Buffs of Colorado. With that being said, Iowa State has 10 victories on the season and only needs one more to receive a first round buy into the CFP 12 team bracket quarterfinals round against Arizona State this Saturday in the Big 12 championship. In my opinion, whoever wins is in and whoever ends up on the losing side will not be in this years 12 team CFP bracket. 

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17. CLEMSON TIGERS (9-3)

The Clemson Tigers have aligned themselves into position to make the first ever 12 team college football playoff bracket, but will have to bring their absolute best against the highly touted Mustangs from SMU. QB Cade Klubnik has been masterful down the stretch of games in leading his team back in closely contested match-ups and has often been doing so with his dual-threat capabilities. He will need to bring that gritty style of play to the field in the ACC Championship as we all expect a high scoring shootout that will come down to the wire, which is exactly where Cade Klubnik tends to thrive. Same deal here, if Clemson wins, they could potentially skip the first round of the CFP 12 team bracket and jump right to the quarterfinals or host a home playoff game and if they were to lose, they are obviously out.  

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18. BYU COUGARS (10-2)

The BYU Cougars had an amazing run up until they ran into a Jayhawks team who had caught fire and were upset by a score of 17 to 13. They then fell to Arizona State the following week by a score of 28 to 23 and finished the season up strong against Houston with a 30 to 18 victory. The Cougs are no longer in contention for the 12 team CFP bracket, but will play in one of the premiere bowl games this 2024-2025 CFB Bowl season and at the start of the 2024-2025 season were picked to finish last in Big 12 football play. All in all, the BYU faithful should be very proud of their team and what they were able to accomplish this season and look forward to another double-digit win season under Coach Sitake! They also will have one of the most talented linebacker recruits in Pierson Watson who you can check out on College Football Today RokFin!  

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20. UNLV REBELS (10-2)

The UNLV Rebels will face-off against Boise State in the Mountain West Conference championship game this Friday night and if they reign victorious, will leap frog the Boise State Broncos and clinch a spot in the 12 team college football playoff bracket. If they are to lose, obviously they are out of consideration, but will most likely play in a very formidable bowl game this coming 2024-2025 CFB Bowl season! I visited UNLV football a few years ago, as I believed they were one of the most up & coming teams nationally and boy was I right. They have since landed All-American's Logan Christensen, Austin Boyd and Linebacker Parker Meese and will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come in the future PAC-12. 

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2024-2025 CFB BOWL GAME SCHEDULE

Check out the complete 2024-2025 CFB bowl game & CFP schedule at College Football Now by clicking the image below!