What the College Football Playoff bracket would look like based on AP Poll Top 25 after Week 1
The College Football Playoff bracket took shape, sort of, with the release of the latest AP Poll.
The matchups on paper are juicy. But remember, it’s only Week 2 and we are a long ways away from the final CFP bracket announcement.
Let’s dive into what the College Football Playoff bracket would look like, based on the AP Poll rankings.
No. 9 Oregon at No. 8 Ole Miss (First Round)
Ole Miss can score and score a lot. Oregon might have the potential to do so as well, but based on Week 1, the Rebels might be favored.
Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss hosting a playoff game on campus would be electric. But, the Ducks are a formidable opponent out of the Big Ten and Dan Lanning will certainly have his defense ready.
No. 12 Boise State at No. 5 Texas (First Round)
The Group of Five representative gets the bottom seed in this case. It won’t be easy for Boise State to go to Austin to take on the Longhorns.
Ashton Jeanty is a beast but he can’t do it alone. Texas is a national title contender this season and having a home playoff game just makes it that much more difficult.
No. 10 Penn State at No. 7 Notre Dame (First Round)
Both teams looked very impressive over the weekend, winning on the road. Penn State’s offense came alive while Notre Dame played total team football.
Putting this game in South Bend would make it quite the environment. Does that automatically mean Penn State has no shot? No, but it’s tough to beat this Marcus Freeman team as it’s currently constructed.
No. 11 Missouri at No. 6 Alabama (First Round)
Oh this is fun and the only thing missing is Nick Saban. He’ll surely be there no? Anyway, Kalen DeBoer picked up right where he left off at Washington and Bama is squarely in the title picture.
Eli Drinkwitz would love to host a game in the playoff, but going to Tuscaloosa and trying to upset the Crimson Tide seems like a fun challenge for the coach. Good luck containing Brady Cook and Luther Burden.
Winner of Oregon/Ole Miss vs. No. 1 Georgia (Quarterfinals)
Now we get into the neutral site games in the next round. Either Dan Lanning faces his mentor or Lane Kiffin faces the new boogeyman of the SEC.
Georgia is the favorite to win it all at this point and after Week 1, the rest of college football should be afraid, again. It’d be fascinating to see if this is going to be an all SEC matchup.
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Tom Herman
FAU set to fire head coach
- 2New
CBB AP Poll
Big movers in latest rankings
- 3
Don Brown fired
UMass parts ways with HC
- 4
Iowa QB out
Ankle injury sidelines Brendan Sullivan
- 5
Phil Longo fired
Wisconsin announces firing of OC
Winner of Boise State/Texas vs. No. 4 Miami (Quarterfinals)
Boise State would need a massive upset to get to this point, but it’d be quite the sight. As far as Texas is concerned, the brand power on display in this matchup would be nuts in the playoff.
Quinn Ewers vs. Cam Ward, Steve Sarkisian vs. Mario Cristobal, defensive studs, you name it. This has flash written all over it.
Winner of Penn State/Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Ohio State (Quarterfinals)
Either Notre Dame gets another crack at the loaded Buckeyes after last season or Penn State gets a second (or even third) date with its Big Ten foe, this time in the playoff. Either way, we’re all in on this part of the bracket.
What will a series look like between Penn State and Ohio State? 1-1 or 2-0? Can one team beat another three times in a season? So many questions.
Winner of Missouri/Alabama vs. No. 3 Utah (Quarterfinals)
And finally, Utah is waiting for an SEC foe based on these projections. Let’s not forget about Utah in this bracket, the projected Big 12 champion.
Kyle Whittingham’s crew is always solid but they’ll surely have their hands full with the Tigers or Crimson Tide. This would be a tight game.
We’re only through Week 1 so take these playoff projections with a grain of salt. We have a long way to go folks.