Boise State's Placement Is A Reminder That Playoff Seeds Not Determined By College Football Rankings

The third edition of the College Football Playoff rankings were released Tuesday, and there was one big change in the format. Boise State, despite being ranked No. 12, is slated to earn a first-round bye since it will be one of the top four conference champions. The Broncos are on a march to the Mountain West Conference Championship Game with its only loss coming to No. 1 Oregon 37-34 in Week 2.

No. 14 BYU is slated to earn the last of the automatic bids as it leads the Big 12 but is not one of the top four conference leaders.

The Big Ten is featured prominently as four of the top five teams reign from the 18-team league, including top-ranked Oregon which clinched a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game last week. The SEC is also well-represented with four teams of its own, led by No. 3 Texas.

Reminder: The top five conference champions get the top five seeds. Therefore, a team’s ranking is not necessarily its seed in the bracket once it’s finalized.

Let’s take a look at the rankings (*= in the playoffs)

1. Oregon*

2. Ohio State*

3. Texas*

4. Penn State*

5. Indiana*

6. Notre Dame*

7. Alabama*

8. Miami*

9. Ole Miss*

10. Georgia*

11. Tennessee

12. Boise State*

13. SMU

14. BYU*

15. Texas A&M

16. Colorado

17. Clemson

18. South Carolina

19. Army

20. Tulane

21. Arizona State

22. Iowa State

23. Missouri

24. UNLV

25. Illinois

Top Takeaways

• The committee is valuing "bad losses" over "good wins." Tennessee fans are about to go nuclear, and it’s all about having a bad loss. The Volunteers did beat No. 7 Alabama, but a loss to Arkansas is seemingly inexcusable in the eyes of the selection committee. Is that the way that the committee should evaluate teams? It seems like they change the rules on a weekly basis, and the Vols came out on the short end of the stick because of that loss to the Hogs.

PROVO, UT - NOVEMBER 16: Brigham Young Cougars quarterback Jake Retzlaff (12) during a game between the Kanas Jayhawks and the BYU Cougars during a college football game on November 16, 2024 at Lavell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah.  (Photo by Boyd Ivey/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

• Speaking of valuing "bad losses" over "good wins," that’s exactly why SMU is ranked over BYU. Why? Because BYU just lost to unranked Kansas. Apparently BYU’s loss is worse than SMU’s loss, even though SMU’s loss was to …….. BYU.

• Indiana can withstand a loss. The Hoosiers don’t have any big wins, but a loss this weekend will be considered a "good loss." That’ll be fine in the eyes of the committee.

• The SEC is conflicted. It has four teams in the field, but Tennessee is on the outside looking in. Still, with four teams in and one more on the bubble, things are still looking fine. However, the conference’s three at-large teams (Alabama, Ole Miss and Georgia) are all slated to play road games in the first round. That would make for some big-time drama.

• Watch out for Arizona State. The Big 12 talk has surrounded BYU and Colorado, but don’t forget the Sun Devils. They play BYU this weekend before closing the season against rival Arizona. If they win out, they will get to the Big 12 Championship Game with a shot to play their way into the CFP.

What Would The Bracket Look Like?

First Round:

9. Alabama vs. 8. Notre Dame

12. BYU vs. 5. Ohio State

10. Ole Miss vs. 7. Indiana

11. Georgia vs. 6. Penn State

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 16: A'Marion McCoy #7 of the Boise State Broncos celebrates against the San Jose State Spartans in the fourth quarter at CEFCU Stadium on November 16, 2024 in San Jose, California.  (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

Quarterfinals:

12/5 Winner vs. 4. Boise State (conference champion)

9/8 Winner vs. 1. Oregon (conference champion)

11/6 Winner vs. 3. Miami (conference champion

10/7 Winner vs. 2. Texas (conference champion)