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The penultimate College Football Playoff rankings were released on Tuesday, November 29. The top three teams in the country came as no surprise with Georgia, Michigan, and TCU occupying the spots, but then there was confusion as the Ohio State Buckeyes fell all the way to No. 5 in the rankings following their loss to Michigan, while the USC Trojans moved up to No. 4.
The decision to drop Ohio State behind USC drew plenty of criticism due to the strength of schedule and the quality loss suffered by the Buckeyes.
So after the rankings were released, College Football Playoff Selection Committee chair Boo Corrigan was available to answer questions about the rankings on a teleconference and he explained the decision to move Ohio State below the Trojans.
“Ohio State has nice wins over Penn State and Notre Dame, and that Michigan game was a whole lot closer early in the fourth quarter than it was (at the end), but then you look at USC and their recent wins over UCLA and Notre Dame, they also have a win over Oregon State. Their one loss is a two-point conversion against Utah in an emotionally charged game. As we looked at the full body of work of both teams, we came out with USC in the No. 4 spot and Ohio State in the No. 5 spot,” Corrigan explained.
While the decision is a blow to Ohio State’s playoff hopes, there is still a chance for the Buckeyes to reach the national semifinals.
USC will face off against the No. 12 Utah Utes in the Pac-12 Conference Championship Game on Friday, December 2. Kickoff at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada is set for 8:00 p.m. ET.
If the Trojans are victorious, Ohio State will have to hope for TCU to slip up in the Big 12 Championship Game against No. 13 Kansas State on Saturday.
