ATHENS — Georgia’s steady climb up the College Football Playoff rankings continued.
The Bulldogs (9-2) were back at No. 7 in the selection committee’s most recent ranking, which was announced roughly a half-hour late in between basketball games on ESPN Tuesday night. That’s up three spots from the previous week, following a 59-21 victory over UMass last Saturday.
However, Georgia is still trailing several teams with stronger records but less outstanding qualities. Despite being ranked far lower in terms of strength of schedule and amount of wins versus ranked opponents, No. 1 Oregon (11-0), No. 2 Ohio State (10-1), No. 3 Texas (10-1), No. 4 Penn State (10-1) and No. 5 Notre Dame (10-1) are still far ahead of the Bulldogs.
Georgia versus Georgia Tech in Athens
The in-state rivals meet in a Friday night game at Sanford Stadium, on ABC.
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For Georgia, the committee’s message is clear: the Bulldogs must perform admirably against Georgia Tech (7-4) on Friday night, then win the SEC Championship game on December 7 to have any hope of returning to their former glory. Georgia was ranked third in the first rankings released for the 2024 season, which occurred in the first week of November.
Tennessee is also a source of concern for the Bulldogs right now, since they are ranked eighth. Despite having the same record (9-2), the Vols lost 31-17 to Georgia on November 16 in Athens. Now, if the Vols defeat Vanderbilt on Saturday in Nashville, they will be idle while the Bulldogs risk their record against Texas or Texas A&M in the SEC Championship Game.
“I get the questions, but they are sort of projecting (what might happen in the future),” selection committee chairman Warde Manuel told the AJC. “We value championship-winning teams; that is valuable to us.” However, the commissioners have asked us to rate the teams through championship weekend. So, if Georgia wins this week, we will judge it based on how the game was played and how they won, just as we do every week. And then, in the final game, we’ll see how the team does. It’s another data point to consider.
Manuel has declined to clarify whether clubs like Georgia will be safeguarded if they lose their third conference title game. However, he did point out that in the last ten years, 22 teams have suffered three defeats in the final 12 of the CFP rankings.
Saturday’s upsets put the Bulldogs back in the SEC Championship game for the fourth straight season. On December 7, they’ll face the winner of this Saturday’s game between Texas and Texas A&M in College Station. A win there would secure Georgia’s first-round bye. A loss would leave the Bulldogs with no certainties.
Georgia was ranked third before losing their second game of the season on the road against Ole Miss on November 9, dropping them all the way to No. 12. To move up to tenth place, the Bulldogs (9-2) defeated then-No. 7 Tennessee (9-2) at home.
Alabama dropped to No. 13 and Ole Miss to No. 14 following their losses last Saturday. Indiana dropped five positions to No. 10 following a 38-15 loss at No. 2 Ohio State. That would keep the Hoosiers in the playoffs, leaving only one game against 1-10 Purdue.
Another huge winner. Tuesday seems to be the ACC. SMU jumped four spots to No. 9, ahead of Indiana, while Clemson gained five to No. 12 after defeating the Citadel at home. This basically guarantees another ACC team a spot in the playoffs.
“Indiana played well at times against Ohio State, though Ohio State pulled away in the second half,” the coach stated. “We also felt that SMU has been playing pretty dominant football recently, with the way they played against Virginia at Virginia; they’ve had some terrific wins and only one loss. Kevin Jennings is one of the nation’s most dynamic quarterbacks right now. So we just felt that SMU and their play on the pitch pushed ahead of Indiana this week, and we’ll keep an eye on it as the season progresses.”
Georgia trounced Clemson 34-3 in the season opener, thus the Tigers’ sustained success only benefits the Bulldogs’ finances.
CFP Rankings (Week 14)
Oregon (11-0) — against Washington (6-5)
Ohio State (10-1) vs. Michigan (6-5)
Texas (10-1) – at Texas A&M (8-3)
Penn State (10-1). — vs Maryland (4-7).
Notre Dame (10–1) — at USC (6–5)
Miami (10-1) — at Syracuse (8-3)
Georgia (9-2) — against Georgia Tech (7-4)
Tennessee (9-2) — at Vanderbilt (6-5)
Indiana (10-1) — against Purdue (1-10)
SMU (10-1) — versus. California (6-5)
Boise State (10-1) vs. Oregon State (5-6)
Clemson (9-2) — against South Carolina (8-3)
Alabama (8-2) — against Auburn (5-6)
Ole Miss (8-3) vs. Mississippi State (2-9)
South Carolina (8-3) — at Clemson (9-2)
Arizona State (9-2) — at Arizona (4-7)
Tulane (9–2) — Thursday at. Memphis (9-2).
Iowa State (9-2) — against Kansas State (8-3)
BYU (9-2)—vs. Houston (6-5)
Texas A&M (8-3) — against Texas (10-1)
Missouri (8-3) — against Arkansas (6-5)
UNLV (9-2) faces Nevada (3-9) Illinois (8-3) travels to Northwestern (4-7) Kansas State (8-3) plays Iowa State (9-2)
Colorado (8-3) — against Oklahoma State (3-8)