Mississippi State, Florida State top first ever College Football Playoff rankings
Three teams from the Southeastern Conference’s West Division made the top four in the initial College Football Playoff rankings, which were released Tuesday.
No. 1 Mississippi State (7-0), No. 3 Auburn (6-1) and No. 4 Mississippi (7-1) are joined by an Atlantic Coast Conference team, No. 2 Florida State (7-0).
The top four teams as selected by a committee on Dec. 7 will compete in college football’s first-ever playoffs. The semifinals will be played Jan. 1 in the Sugar Bowl and the Orange Bowl, with No. 1 facing No. 4, No. 2 playing No. 3. The winners will compete for the championship Jan. 12 in Arlington, Texas.
As the rankings currently stand, the semifinals would feature an all-Mississippi matchup.
Rounding out the top 10 in the CFP rankings are No. 5 Oregon (7-1), No. 6 Alabama (7-1), No. 7 TCU (6-1), No. 8 Michigan State (7-1), No. 9 Kansas State (6-1) and No. 10 Notre Dame (6-1).
The Crimson Tide are ranked No. 3 in the Associated Press Top 25, which has the Rebels at No. 7.
The rest of the CFP’s top 20: No. 11 Georgia (6-1), No. 12 Arizona (6-1), No. 13 Baylor (6-1), No. 14 Arizona State (6-1), No. 15 Nebraska (7-1), No. 16 Ohio State (6-1), No. 17 Utah (6-1), No. 18 Oklahoma (5-2), No. 19 LSU (7-2) and No. 20 West Virginia (6-2).
No. 21 Clemson (6-2), No. 22 UCLA (6-2), No. 23 East Carolina (6-1), No. 24 Duke (6-1) and No. 25 Louisville (6-2) complete the CFP list.
Marshall (8-0) is unranked despite being one of just three unbeaten teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision. The Thundering Herd are No. 23 in the AP poll.
