ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit not surprised by No. 1 team in initial College Football Playoff rankings

The first edition of the 2023 College Football Playoff rankings debuted on Tuesday night, with Ohio State checking in as the nation’s top-ranked team.

There’s plenty to discuss and debate, starting with that No. 1 team designation. But at least one ESPN analyst isn’t all that upset about how the initial rankings shook out.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if anybody was No. 1,” ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit said. “I think the resume speaks for itself, I’m sure that’s why they put them up at No. 1. I’m sure it was a great discussion about Georgia, two-time defending champ.”

Despite having won 40 of their last 41 games, Georgia checked in ranked No. 2, behind the Buckeyes. That will certainly spark some debates in the south.

Herbstreit, though, offered a pretty good basis to defend the Ohio State selection with.

“It’s all about 2023 and what’s happened this year,” he said. “The great thing about this is, at the end of the day, whether you’re 1 or you’re 2 or you’re 3 or 4, all these teams are going to control their own destiny, even Ohio State and Michigan playing each other. You look at Florida State now, a team that you’ve talked about. They’re in a really good spot controlling their own destiny.

“But there’s the numbers, and that’s probably what stood out to the committee, is what Ohio State did going to South Bend, beating Penn State and even beating Wisconsin in Madison, an impressive win.”

That said, there will be ample opportunities for both programs to prove their mettle in the College Football Playoff rankings over the final month of the season. Georgia probably has a few more, with Ohio State’s remaining major contest coming against Michigan.

The Bulldogs have a handful of tough games.

“Georgia has a gauntlet coming up,” analyst Greg McElroy said. “If you look at what they have coming up this week at Missouri, Missouri’s real. I know they’re not the traditional blueblood brand, that people have kind of slowly gotten on board with them being OK. They’re real. They have a good quarterback, they have explosive playmakers.

“Then you’ve got Ole Miss, then you have a road trip to Tennessee.”

McElroy made a comparison that should have Georgia fans on edge. It won’t be an easy stretch, but that’s what it takes to prove you’re deserving of the No. 1 spot in the College Football Playoff rankings.

“We kind of looked at Notre Dame a couple weeks ago, at the end of the run it’s like they’re out of gas and they lost to Louisville,” McElroy said. “Could that potentially happen to Georgia? Because if they get through this gauntlet unscathed, I’d be shocked if by Week 12 when they’re teeing it up against Georgia Tech if they’re not sitting atop the rankings.”