Not much has changed for the Buckeyes after a 52-14 pasting of Illinois as Ohio State remains at No. 9 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings.
This week did very little to clarify the playoff landscape. For the first time in the history of the College Football Playoff rankings, no team in the top 10 lost this week.
Alabama was once again ranked No. 1 while Miami overtook Clemson's No. 2 ranking and the Tigers fell to No. 3. Oklahoma rounded out the top four, coming in at No. 4. The first team out, if the season ended today, would be No. 5 Wisconsin with No. 6 Auburn shortly behind.
The Big Ten has five teams in the top 25: No. 22 Northwestern, No. 16 Michigan State, No. 10 Penn State, No. 9 Ohio State and No. 5 Wisconsin. The Buckeyes have wins over the Spartans and the Nittany Lions already this season and have a crack at No. 5 Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship game.
ESPN will air one more of its one-hour College Football Playoff: Top 25 show next Tuesday, before the selection committee reveals its final rankings on Sunday, Dec. 3. With wins against Michigan and Wisconsin, Ohio State could make the playoff race very interesting.
Here are the full rankings.
| Rank | Team | Conf. | Record | Key Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ALABAMA | SEC | 11–0 | @ AUBURN (11/25) |
| 2 | MIAMI | ACC | 10-0 | ACC CHAMPIONSHIP vs CLEMSON (12/2) |
| 3 | CLEMSON | ACC | 10-1 | ACC CHAMPIONSHIP vs MIAMI (12/2) |
| 4 | OKLAHOMA | BIG 12 | 10–1 | Big 12 CHAMPIONSHIP (12/2) |
| 5 | WISCONSIN | BIG TEN | 11-0 | B1G CHAMPIONSHIP vs OHIO STATE (12/2) |
| 6 | AUBURN | SEC | 9-2 | vs ALABAMA (11/25) |
| 7 | GEORGIA | SEC | 10–1 | @ GEORGIA TECH (11/25), SEC CHAMPIONSHIP (12/2) |
| 8 | NOTRE DAME | IND | 9–2 | @ STANFORD (11/25) |
| 9 | OHIO STATE | BIG TEN | 9-2 | @ MICHIGAN (11/25), B1G CHAMPIONSHIP vs WISCONSIN |
| 10 | PENN STATE | BIG TEN | 9–2 | – |
| 11 | USC | PAC-12 | 10–2 | |
| 12 | TCU | BIG 12 | 9–2 | – |
| 13 | WASHINGTON STATE | PAC-12 | 9-2 | @ WASHINGTON (11/25) |
| 14 | MISSISSIPPI STATE | SEC | 8-3 | vs MISSISSIPPI (11/23) |
| 15 | UCF | AAC | 9–0 | vs USF (11/24) |
| 16 | MICHIGAN STATE | BIG TEN | 8-3 | – |
| 17 | WASHINGTON | PAC-12 | 9-2 | vs WASHINGTON STATE (11/25) |
| 18 | LSU | SEC | 8-3 | – |
| 19 | OKLAHOMA STATE | BIG 12 | 8-3 | – |
| 20 | MEMPHIS | AAC | 9-1 | – |
| 21 | STANFORD | PAC-12 | 8-3 | – |
| 22 | NORTHWESTERN | BIG TEN | 8-3 | – |
| 23 | BOISE STATE | MOUNTAIN WEST | 8-3 | – |
| 24 | SOUTH CAROLINA | SEC | 8-3 | – |
| 25 | VIRGINIA TECH | ACC | 8-3 | – |
