Danny Kanell blasts College Football Playoff rankings for Missouri inclusion, hammers 'strength of schedule'

There was a lot to pick apart in the third edition of the College Football Playoff rankings, released on Tuesday night. And one analyst is taking particular issue with the perceived strength of schedule boost SEC teams are currently getting.

Analyst Danny Kanell chimed in after the rankings release, latching onto one SEC team in particular.

Missouri is ranked #23?? LOL. Must be buoyed by this year's favorite "Strength of schedule" metric. I mean they did play Texas AM and Alabama. Sure they got beat 41-10 and 34-0. BUT THAT SCHEDULE IS STRONG

— Danny Kanell (@dannykanell) November 20, 2024

Missouri did indeed check in at No. 23 in the College Football Playoff rankings this week, a reappearance after a brief exit following the team’s third loss of the season.

The Tigers, at one point considered a playoff hopeful, are just .500 in their last six games. Granted, they have faced some quality competition — as Kanell notes, games against ranked Texas A&M and Alabama teams — in that span, lending credence to the idea that the Tigers should be included in the College Football Playoff rankings.

Kanell isn’t so sold.

And it’s a valid point that the two losses noted above were absolute shellackings. At no point were the Tigers competitive in either contest.

The same case can’t be made for the most recent loss, a 34-30 defeat at the hands of South Carolina on the road. Missouri was up late in that one but failed to hang on.

In any case, Kanell found his point to hone in on this week in the College Football Playoff rankings and hammered down.

Missouri, of course, is no threat to actually reach the playoffs at this point. It would take far too much movement with just two weeks in the regular season remaining to realistically happen.

Still, the ranking apparently stuck in the craw of the noted college football analyst.