College Football

CFP rankings: Bearcats get their due, while Buckeyes-Wolverines epic is set

Updated Nov. 25, 2021 8:01 p.m. ET

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By RJ Young
FOX Sports College Football Writer

It happened. It finally happened.

Cincinnati made history Tuesday, becoming the first program outside of the Power 5 conferences to earn a top-four spot in the College Football Playoff selection committee’s rankings.

The No. 4-ranked Bearcats still have a game against 7-4 East Carolina, plus the American Athletic Conference championship game, left to play. But the path to becoming the first Group of 5 program to earn an invitation to a CFP semifinal game is well and truly ahead of them.

While many — myself included — celebrate this ranking for its fairness and as a vault forward in how we evaluate teams, CFP committee chair Gary Barta categorized Cincy’s inclusion in the top four as little more than academic.

"They won again," he said. "Their victory over a good SMU team combined with Oregon's loss led the committee to rank Cincinnati at No. 4."

The Bearcats had to be perfect — one of just three 11-0 teams in the sport — to earn that opportunity. If the top four rankings hold, Cincinnati will play a rematch of the 2020 Peach Bowl against No. 1-ranked Georgia.

The Bulldogs have been dominant on defense and are pushing to become one of the best in the history of the sport. The No. 2-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes feature perhaps the nation’s best chance to threaten that UGA defense with their high-octane, high-scoring offense.

Perhaps the CFP committee members checked their phones at around 2 p.m. ET last Saturday, saw that Ohio State led Michigan State 49-0 at the half — and Heisman candidate C.J. Stroud had thrown for nearly 400 yards and six TDs — and decided what was obvious: This is the second-best team in the sport.

Add to this that the Buckeyes' defense didn’t allow a Spartan score until the start of the fourth quarter, and you can see how the CFP committee ranked the Buckeyes ahead of Alabama on style points alone.

Kenneth Walker, a Heisman candidate at tailback, walked into the Shoe averaging 147.3 rushing yards per game. Against the OSU defense, he had just six carries for 25 yards.

"It certainly gets your attention, though, when they're up 49-0 at half," Barta said. "They had three receivers all over 100 yards for the game, and C.J. Stroud played great again. I will say this, though … we all know that Kenneth Walker is a great running back, and Ohio State was able to hold him pretty much ineffective."

Alabama's shaky win against a plucky Arkansas team made that decision easier. The Razorbacks — the same Razorbacks who were held scoreless by UGA earlier this season — had a chance to tie the game late against the Tide.

If Alabama does not lose to Auburn in the Iron Bowl, the Tide will get a chance to prove their mettle, though, in the SEC championship game.

No. 5 Michigan, meanwhile, is right where it wants to be. Heading into The Game this weekend against the Buckeyes, the Wolverines are playing a game that decides Big Ten East supremacy and will function as an elimination game for the CFP.

The winner earns a chance to win the league title and, with the B1G crown, a chance at the national one. With all eyes on the top-five showdown, the Wolverines and Buckeyes will each look to leave a mark on their rival that acts as a signature win.

And the game will feature great versus great: The Ohio State pass offense ranks No. 6 in the country, and the Michigan pass defense ranks No. 8.

It certainly sounds like the committee is looking for a reason to include the Big Ten champion in its playoff if that champion comes from the East Division.

"Michigan, we've talked, especially the last several weeks about just them being a complete football team," he said. "They're well-balanced. Their offense and defense are both ranked nationally in most categories. Their best win to date is at Wisconsin. They also had a good win at Penn State. Very good football team, well-balanced, and obviously looking forward to watching Ohio State and Michigan play this weekend."

For now, the state of Ohio is responsible for producing half of the four best teams in the sport.

Here are the complete CFP rankings:

1. Georgia (11-0)
2. Ohio State (10-1)
3. Alabama (10-1)
4. Cincinnati (11-0)
5. Michigan (10-1)
6. Notre Dame (10-1)
7. Oklahoma State (10-1)
8. Baylor (9-2)
9. Ole Miss (9-2)
10. Oklahoma (10-1)
11. Oregon (9-2)
12. Michigan State (9-2)
13. BYU (9-2)
14. Wisconsin (8-3)
15. Texas A&M (8-3)
16. Iowa (9-2)
17. Pittsburgh (9-2)
18. Wake Forest 9-2)
19. Utah (8-3)
20. NC State (8-3)
21. San Diego State (10-1)
22. UTSA (11-0)
23. Clemson (8-3)
24. Houston (10-1)
25. Arkansas (7-4)

RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast "The No. 1 Ranked Show with RJ Young." Follow him on Twitter at @RJ_Young, and subscribe to "The RJ Young Show" on YouTube. He is not on a StepMill.

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RJ Young