College Football Playoff Picture: Here’s what the 12-team bracket looks like after Week 8

There are just two more weeks until the first College Football Playoff rankings.

With this season’s playoff expanding to 12 teams, we are laying out the projected playoff field each week ahead of the inaugural 2024 rankings release on Nov. 5.

Without CFP rankings as our guide, we mostly rely on the AP Top 25 as our barometer to project the field. The CFP rankings and AP poll typically have many more similarities than differences at the end of the season. Here’s what the provisional playoff field looks like after the third Saturday in October.

First-round byes

1. Oregon (7-0, projected Big Ten champion)

The Ducks are atop the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2012 after Texas’ loss and their win over Purdue in Week 8. The path to an undefeated regular season also looks very achievable. No. 20 Illinois visits Eugene on Saturday and the Illini are the only ranked team remaining on Oregon’s schedule now that Michigan is 4-3. The Ducks’ visit to Ann Arbor on Nov. 2 looks a lot less tough now that it’s become clear that Michigan is unable to figure out its passing woes.

2. Georgia (6-1, projected SEC champion)

Were you one of the doubters that Kirby Smart told his team about in the days leading up to the Bulldogs’ big win over Texas? Doubting Georgia under Smart is always a bad move, though there’s a stark difference between doubting the Bulldogs and thinking that Texas could win at home as a 3.5-point favorite. Georgia’s defensive front was monstrous against the Longhorns, but the offense simply has to be better. Carson Beck has eight interceptions across four SEC games.

3. Miami (7-0, projected ACC champion)

The high-wire Hurricanes did it again against Louisville. Miami got a pivotal two-score lead in the fourth quarter and benefitted from Cam Ward’s arm barely moving forward on what could have been a key…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-10-22 13:00:22

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