College Football Playoff Rankings after Week 2: First four in, first two out

We have a new entry into the College Football Playoff Rankings after Week 2: Hello, Texas. 

The Longhorns validated an offseason of hype by going to No. 4 Alabama and whipping the Tide by 10 points. It was the most impressive victory thus far for any team in the 2023 season — and that might be the case by the end of the year, too. 

Other teams like USC and Notre Dame continue to impress as well. 

So how do we see the rankings after two (or three for a few teams) games? Reminder: This is not a projection of how we see the playoff shaking out by season’s end. It’s how we think the committee would rank these teams today based on preseason rankings and what we’ve seen thus far. 

Here’s how we project the 2023 College Football Playoff Rankings would like after Week 2:

1. Georgia

We’ll learn more about the Bulldogs in Week 3 when they host South Carolina. But for now, UGA remains the top-ranked team in the country. 

Kirby Smart has won 19 straight games, sleepwalking through the first quarter against Ball State before scoring 31 straight points before halftime. Georgia’s defense looks among the nation’s best again (No. 1 in the SEC in scoring and yards per play allowed), while quarterback Carson Beck continues to build chemistry with a deep group of pass-catchers (he connected with 11 different receivers on Saturday). 

After two no-nothing opponents, Georgia will at least be challenged by South Carolina’s athletes and quarterback Spencer Rattler. The Bulldogs disposed of the Gamecocks 48-7 in Columbia last season and won 40-13 in Athens in 2021.

2. Michigan

It’s been the J.J. McCarthy Show for the Wolverines to start the 2023 season. In two games, the junior nearly has as many touchdowns (five) as incompletions (six), throwing for 558 yards at an 87.3% clip.

He’s averaging 10.1 yards per attempt and doesn’t have a turnover. Roman Wilson has emerged as McCarthy’s go-to target, with the senior averaging 16.7 yards per catch and hauling in all five scores. 

Notably, Michigan has not been overly efficient running the ball thus far in 2023. Blake Corum has four touchdowns, but as a team, the Wolverines are averaging just 4.7 yards per carry against East Carolina and UNLV. Their success rate is just 39.7% — 77th nationally. 

The Wolverines have one more non-conference cupcake Bowling Green before starting Big Ten play. 

3. Florida State

Texas has the best win of the 2022 season, but Florida State has still been the most impressively dominant team after two weeks. 

The Seminoles routed LSU in Week 1 and showed no signs of a letdown Saturday, splattering Southern Miss 66-13. The Seminoles have scored 45+ points in both games to start a season for the first time since 2016. Jordan Travis and Keon Coleman stole the show against the Tigers, but it was Trey Benson and FSU’s ground game that gashed the Golden Eagles.

Benson rushed for three touchdowns at nearly 9.0 yards per clip, with the ‘Noles finishing with 306 yards and four scores on the afternoon. 

Week 3 features the first of straight ACC road games — at Boston College and then a trip to Death Valley against Clemson.

4. Texas

The Longhorns made a statement in Tuscaloosa — narratives can change. Steve Sarkisian has his best team in Austin, and after a multi-year developmental process, Texas is clearly ready to compete with anyone in the country. 

Quinn Ewers showcased the best deep-ball accuracy of his career against Alabama, and Xavier Worthy, AD Mitchell and Ja’Tavion Sanders proved why they’re among the most dangerous group of playmakers in America. Most impressively, Texas’ OL and DLs — two groups that have held the program back for the last decade — have NFL dudes capable of bullying the Tide. 

Texas took Alabama’s haymakers and punched back, delivering the knockout blow with a seven-minute touchdown drive in the 4th quarter.

Sarkisian’s challenge now is making sure his team doesn’t get blindsided with a letdown performance — starting Saturday against Wyoming, which beat Texas Tech in Week 1.

First Two Out:

5. USC

If not for Georgia and Michigan getting slightly rewarded for past performances, the Trojans would absolutely have an argument to be among the Top 4. 

Caleb Williams‘ Heisman 2.0 campaign is off to a rocket start, as the junior has 13 total touchdowns and zero turnovers through three games. Against Stanford, Williams was 19 of 21 for 281 yards at 13.4 per pass with three scores. It’s hard to do that in Madden. 

Meanwhile, Alex Grinch’s defense has started to show signs of growth in the last two weeks. After holding Nevada to just 49 yards rushing, with five sacks and 10 TFLs, the Trojans slowed Stanford’s pedal-to-the-medal offense thanks to timely stops on 3rd down (the Cardinal were just 4 of 13) — a major sore spot for the unit in 2022. They had double-digit TFLs for the second-straight week, too — something that never happened twice all season last year. 

Tackling and maintaining gap control is still too inconsistent (5.1 yards per rush allowed vs. Stanford), and some of the other underlying stats are still a bit concerning (101st in total EPA, but 62nd in success rate). Still, there’s room for growth, and a much-maligned unit is getting better — and that might be all USC needs if Caleb Williams is going to go nuclear every weekend. 

6. Notre Dame 

Perhaps this is a bit too bullish, but when looking at the next several teams who might slide into this final spot — Ohio State, Penn State, Washington and Notre Dame — the Irish have the best resume thus far of the bunch. 

The Buckeyes have been fantastic on defense and mostly mid offensively. Drew Allar has been awesome for Penn State, but the Nittany Lions needed a late, late score against West Virginia to make that result look worse than it really was. Washington housed Boise State, but then the Broncos lost on the blue turf to UCF. 

We’re parsing four good teams here, but Notre Dame is 3-0 — with all three wins thoroughly dominant, including a victory at NC State last weekend. After waiting out a two-hour weather delay, the Irish struck gold on the opening play with an 80-yard touchdown run by Audric Estime. Sam Hartman has been the best transfer quarterback (10 touchdowns, zero picks, 75% completion) not named Shedeur Sanders. 

After a game against Central Michigan in Week 3, Notre Dame’s showdown with Ohio State on Sept. 23 will provide a lot more clarity here.