College Football Playoffs: Where did Ole Miss land in first Top 25 rankings of the season?
Tuesday brought the first College Football Playoff rankings of the season and Ole Miss knows the path that it must take to earn its first berth into the national title tournament.
After back-to-back Southeastern Conference wins, including this past Saturday’s blowout at Arkansas, the Rebels were ranked No. 16 in the first CFP Top 25.
Getting as close to No. 12 as possible was the goal in this first batch of rankings, which did not happen as the Rebels stayed in line with its ranking in Associated Press Poll. With No. 3 Georgia coming to Oxford this weekend it sets up yet another major November opportunity for Ole Miss. Similar to the one it had when it went to Athens last year as the No. 9 team in the nation.
The Rebels are one of eight SEC teams in the the first CFP rankings and are seventh in line behind the Bulldogs, Texas (No. 5), Tennessee (No. 7), Alabama (No. 11), Texas A&M (No. 14) and LSU (No. 15). How many SEC teams will get into the actual 12-team playoff has been a major point of discussion since the expansion was announced.
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A pair of early losses to Kentucky and LSU damaged the Rebels résumé but the last two wins and a win over the Bulldogs this weekend would wipe out those losses, setting up an important final two-game stretch the regular season.
Fifth-year Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin rarely discusses the big picture and championship possibilities but the enormity of this week caused him to change course with his team.
“We screwed two games up earlier in the year and when you do that you put yourself in this situation,” Kiffin said on Monday. “I don’t talk about playoffs, normally, and championships and all that because I think it really doesn’t matter. I think it’s about how you prepare and how you play. I told our players, because they hear it all the time, you still have all that stuff alive. In my opinion, anybody that’s going to win it, they’re going to have to go through Georgia at some point.”
The Complete College Football Playoff Rankings Below:
- Oregon (9-0)
- Ohio State (7-1)
- Georgia (7-1)
- Miami (9-0)
- Texas (7-1)
- Penn State (7-1)
- Tennessee (7-1)
- Indiana (9-0)
- BYU (8-0)
- Notre Dame (7-1)
- Alabama (6-2)
- Boise State (7-1)
- SMU (8-1)
- Texas A&M (7-2)
- LSU (6-2)
- Ole Miss (7-2)
- Iowa State (7-1)
- Pittsburgh (7-1)
- Kansas State (7-2)
- Colorado (6-2)
- Washington State (7-1)
- Louisville (6-3)
- Clemson (6-2)
- Missouri (6-2)
- Army (8-0)
