12-team College Football Playoff rankings prediction: Texas A&M proves it's legit
I won't lie to you and say that Week 9 of the 2024 college football season was a particularly thrilling one because it wasn't. Outside of Kennesaw State getting their first ever FBS win over previously undefeated Liberty on Wednesday night, we didn't see any major upsets. And while a few games involving contenders did go down to the wire, anyone with legitimate title aspirations facing outmatched competition handled business.
But there was one game of major significance played, and it did its job of shaking up my playoff projections.
2024 College Football Playoff projections after Week 9
There's not much new to the field this week, but one new team enters and jumped several teams in the process.
Rank | Team | Why They Are Here | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
1. | Oregon | Big Ten Champion | 1. |
2. | Georgia | SEC Champion | 2. |
3. | Miami | ACC Champion | 3. |
4. | BYU | Big 12 Champion | 4. |
5. | Penn State | At-Large | 5. |
6. | Texas A&M | At-Large | NR |
7. | Texas | At-Large | 6. |
8. | Ohio State | At-Large | 7. |
9. | Indiana | At-Large | 9. |
10. | Clemson | At-Large | 8. |
11. | Iowa State | At-Large | 10. |
12. | Boise State | Highest Ranked G5 Champion | 12. |
Dropped Out - LSU (previously 11th)
Texas A&M is actually good, for real this time
Since that Week 1 loss to Notre Dame, Texas A&M has been quietly chugging along. Mike Elko's Aggies just kept winning games, and suddenly their matchup with LSU became a clash for 1st place in the SEC. A&M trailed the Tigers 17-7 at the half, but after going to Marcel Reed at QB, they exploded for 31 second-half points to pull away for a 38-23 victory.
The Aggies are really good, and it's time my rankings reflect that. I've moved them all the way from outside the playoff field up to the #6 seed, ahead of teams such as Texas and Ohio State. Right now, A&M's resume is better. LSU, meanwhile, dropped out.
Now, technically speaking, Texas A&M would be one of the nation's Top-4 seeds and own the SEC's automatic bids to the playoff field if I were just going off the league standings. They own the SEC's only undefeated conference record. And seeing as how they've now got a respectable collection of wins and their lone loss isn't bad, I could also put them in that spot off merit.
However, there is some level of projecting to my playoff field, and my feeling is that Georgia is ultimately the team that's better and more likely to take the SEC crown. So for that reason, I've still got the Bulldogs occupying the #2 seed. But the path to Atlanta is clear for the Aggies, and if they get there, they've got a shot.
Elsewhere in the Top-12, Boise State took down UNLV on the road in a tight contest to take firm control (for now) of the G5 playoff bid. Everyone else held serve, doing what they needed to get wins (even if they didn't look great) and stay in the projected field.
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