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Miami is still No. 1.
The undefeated Hurricanes held onto the top spot in the AP Top 25 for a third straight week, a day after downing Bill Belichick’s North Carolina. It’s one of just two ACC teams in a Top 25 that’s dominated by the SEC.
The SEC kept 10 schools on the list, including South Carolina and Florida, both 5–3. The Big 12 and Big Ten each have five teams represented, including No. 3 Utah and No. 5 UCLA, respectively—the only undefeated FBS teams in the country, aside from Miami.
UCLA spent big during the offseason to bring in head coach Bob Chesney, who led James Madison to the CFP last season. Meanwhile, Utah is becoming a Big 12 powerhouse after becoming the first university to sign a private-equity deal.
But in a few days, the AP poll will start to matter less as teams focus on a different measurement. That’s because the first College Football Playoff rankings are set to be announced Tuesday. A 13-member selection committee—which currently includes six athletic directors, four former coaches, two former players, and one former sportswriter—will help determine which 12 teams will play for a national championship.
That’s a notable difference from the AP rankings, which are voted on by about 60 sports journalists via online ballot.
But the criteria are comparable. According to the CFP website, the selection committee ranks teams based on on-field performance that accounts for metrics “including Strength of schedule, head to head, comparative outcomes of common opponents and strength of record.”
The committee will release its rankings every week for the next six weeks, culminating in final rankings Dec. 6 after conference championship games.
Each champion from the Power Four conferences—the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, and SEC—receives an automatic bid to the College Football Playoff, with one automatic bid going to a Group of 6 team. No. 20 Boise State of the Pac-12 and No. 22 New Mexico of the Mountain West are the only Group of Six teams in this week’s AP rankings.
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