NEW YORK – Despite ranking in the top four in both major college football polls, the Buckeyes did not crack the field in the initial College Football Playoff rankings of the season.
No. 3 Ohio St. at Iowa (5-3, 2-3); at Kinnick Stadium, Iowa City, IA; Sat. (3:30 p.m./ESPN)
Ohio State (7-1, 5-0 Big Ten) is 6th on the list of 25 teams while Georgia — No. 2 in The Associated Press and coaches’ poll — is No. 1 in the CFP standings, ahead of Alabama, Notre Dame and Clemson.
The rankings are an affirmation by the selection committee that what matters in choosing the top four is not just a team’s record but also the opponents that team beat or lost closely to. Oklahoma, which handed OSU its only loss, is in the No. 5 spot.
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That also helps explain why Georgia is ahead of Alabama, despite the Crimson Tide’s overwhelming top billing in both major polls; why Notre Dame is No.3, it’s only loss coming by one point to Georgia at home in September; and sort of why Clemson, the defending national champion, is No.4 despite its road loss to heavy underdog Syracuse in mid-October.
The Crimson Tide have scored over 40 points in six of their eight games. The Irish have put together blowout wins over Michigan State, Southern California and North Carolina State since their loss to Georgia. The Tigers are 7-1 and opened their season with six straight wins before a 27-24 loss at Syracuse on Oct. 13.