Georgia moved up to No. 1 in the College Football Playoff rankings Tuesday night, nudging past Ohio State, with third-place Michigan and fourth-place Florida State holding their spots in the top four.
Georgia, the two-time defending national champion, had maybe its most impressive performance of the season Saturday in beating Mississippi 52-17. It was the second straight week the Bulldogs defeated a ranked opponent, after downing Missouri the game before.
Selection committee chairman Boo Corrigan, the athletic director at North Carolina State, said Missouri’s big win last week against Tennessee helped bolster Georgia’s case for No. 1.
“Active, strong debate in the room,” Corrigan said of choosing between Georgia and Ohio State.
Michigan is also coming off its first victory against a ranked team. The Wolverines won 24-15 at Penn State, but couldn’t pass Big Ten rival Ohio State. They will play the Buckeyes at home on Nov. 25.
The top eight teams in the rankings won last week, and the selection committee’s only changes among that group were at the very top.
Washington (10-0) was fifth again, followed by Oregon (9-1), Texas (9-1) and Alabama (9-1).
Missouri (8-2) at nine and Louisville (9-1) were new to the top 10 this week.
No team with two losses has ever made the College Football Playoff, and only one team from the Group of Five has made the final top four — Cincinnati in 2021.
Using that as a measuring stick, there appear to be nine teams in playoff contention: The top eight plus Louisville.
There are three rankings left, including the last one on Dec. 3 that will set the field for the final four-team playoff before the event expands to 12 teams next year.
Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at http://www.appodcasts.com. Get alerts on the latest AP Top 25 poll throughout the season. Sign up here
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