Playoff Committee Rankings: Alabama vs. Ohio State, Michigan vs. TCU

December 4, 2022 by CollegeFootballPlayoff.com and CollgeFootballPoll.com

The final College Football Playoff Committee revealed its final rankings on Saturday without any real drama.

Georgia and Michigan stay 1st and 2nd after winning their respective conference championship games by 3 touchdowns.

TCU stays at No. 3 after losing to Kansas State by a field goal in overtime after a goal-line stand kept the Horned Frogs from going up by a TD.

USC falls from No. 4 after a second loss on the season to Utah. The first was by a point on a gusty 2-0point conversion at the end of the game. The PAC-12 championship loss became a 47-24 blowout.

That left Ohio State as the benefactor as the Buckeyes moved back up to No. 4 after being demoted to 5th by the 45-23 regular season finale loss at home to Michigan.

Alabama is the first team out, despite Nick Saban's reasonable plea for inclusion. The Tide had 2 losses, but both came on the road to quality opponents on the final play by a combined 4 points, and without a healthy Bryce Young at QB. The Tide lost 33-32 at LSU in OT November 5, and 52-49 at Tennessee on October 15.

Another SEC team Tennessee, is ranked 6th. The Vols were no longer in the discussion after their second loss was a 63-38 annihilation at South Carolina on November 19 after falling 27-13 at Georgia two weeks earlier.

Tulane, as expected, was the highest-ranked Group of Five school and receives the automatic bid to the Cotton Bowl where the Green Wave will face USC.

The College Football Playoff matches the No. 1 ranked team vs. No. 4, and No. 2 vs. No. 3 in semifinal games that rotate annually among six bowl games – the Cotton, Fiesta, Peach, Orange Bowl, Sugar and Rose. This season's Playoff Semifinals will take place Saturday, December 31, 2022, at the Peach and Fiesta Bowls. The College Football Playoff National Championship will be Monday, January 9, 2023, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA.

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