Big Ten, SEC Dominate; Alabama Ranks 11th As CFP Picture Sharpens

The penultimate College Football Playoff rankings of 2024 have revealed the clearest picture yet of which schools could and should be in the first 12-team postseason bracket—and who is likely on the outside looking in.

Here’s how many teams each conference would have, based on the projected bracket heading into conference championship weekend, which features conference newcomers in all Power 4 title games (selection committee rankings are in parentheses).

• Big Ten: Oregon (1), Penn State (3), Ohio State (6), Indiana (9)
• SEC: Texas (2), Georgia (5), Tennessee (7), Alabama (11)
• ACC: SMU (8)
• Big 12: Arizona State (15)
• Mountain West: Boise State (10)
• Independents: Notre Dame (4)

Ranked teams not shown above: Miami (12), Ole Miss (13), South Carolina (14), Iowa State (16), Clemson (17), BYU (18), Missouri (19), UNLV (20), Illinois (21), Syracuse (22), Colorado (23), Army 24, and Memphis (25).

The ACC and Big 12 championship games may be win-or-go-home contests for Clemson/SMU and Arizona State/Iowa State, respectively. Participants in the Big Ten title game (Oregon and Penn State) and the SEC’s (Texas and Georgia) look to be Playoff-bound even with a loss, with the winner earning a coveted first-round bye.

Conferences will split $116 million based on the teams that qualify, starting with $4 million for each school that makes the CFP and for each school that reaches the quarterfinal.

Making a Case

Even before Tuesday night’s rankings were revealed, campaigning for the final Playoff spots had already begun.

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips made the case for his conference to potentially have multiple bids—particularly if SMU were to lose to Clemson in Saturday’s championship game.

“If you’re inside of that top 12 or so, and you’re projected to be in, it would be very alarming for you to be moved out because you played an extra game while everyone else is sitting home,” Phillips said during an interview on SiriusXM. “You cannot and should not be penalized for having to play a 13th game after a very long season.”

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin tweeted a lengthy note, in which he tagged the official CFP account, laying out his reasoning for why the Rebels should make the postseason over Alabama and South Carolina. “Clearly Ole Miss should be in the playoff over Alabama,” he wrote, “but Bama is the bigger brand and more than likely will get in over Ole Miss.”