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ESPN ranks the six remaining undefeated teams in college football

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•10/25/22
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(Scott Taetsch / Getty Images)

With the first edition of the College Football Playoff rankings to be unveiled a week from today, ESPN has ranked the six remaining undefeated teams in college football. The ranks have thinned considerably in the last few weeks, creating a much clearer playoff picture.

Currently ESPN leans toward the Big Ten teams more heavily than the college football polls do, with Ohio State and Michigan as top-3 teams, whereas Georgia and Tennessee are both top-3 teams in this week’s AP Poll.

Here is ESPN’s complete ranking of the six remaining undefeated teams:

  1. Ohio State
  2. Georgia
  3. Michigan
  4. Tennessee
  5. Clemson
  6. TCU

Those rankings are sure to change in the coming weeks, in part because some of the currently unbeaten teams will face each other.

First up will be Georgia-Tennessee, which will take place in Athens, Ga., less than two weeks from now. Ohio State and Michigan will also meet, though not until the regular-season finale on Nov. 26. That game will be at Ohio State.

Undefeated teams still have some key questions

In its breakdown of the six remaining undefeated teams, ESPN+ provided some pivotal questions for each contender.

They’re fairly straightforward, a mix between being unsure how teams will respond to more challenging tests and how well teams can sustain success.

For top-ranked Ohio State, for example, ESPN has questions about whether the Buckeyes have really faced a good team this year. At the time, a season-opening win over Notre Dame was viewed as a quality win, but the Fighting Irish have lost three games already this year.

Of course, a road trip to Penn State this weekend will begin to answer that question.

For others?

ESPN wonders if anyone can exploit Georgia’s lack of explosiveness offensively. The Worldwide Leader has questions about what happens if JJ McCarthy is forced to win a game for Michigan. Can Tennessee’s defense hold up? Does Clemson have enough offensive firepower to keep surviving after several close calls?

There are plenty of questions each of the remaining contenders must answer. That’s why they play the games, right?