Nov 21, 2015; Iowa City, IA, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback C.J. Beathard (16) talks to his team during the third quarter in their game with the Purdue Boilermakers at Kinnick Stadium. Iowa beat Purdue 40-20. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports
and Iowa made the most significant jumps in the College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night.
Unbeaten Clemson remained No. 1 and once-beaten Alabama stayed at No. 2 after both had convincing wins Saturday, but Oklahoma (9-1) rose to No. 3 following its victory over TCU while unbeaten Iowa moved up to No. 4.
Ohio State was No. 3 last week, but slipped to No. 8 after its loss to Michigan State, which rose to No. 5.
Notre Dame, which was No. 4 last week, dropped to No. 6 after an unimpressive three-point win over Boston College. The Irish could gain ground this week, however, because they face No. 9-ranked Stanford on the Cardinal’s home field. A win in that game could persuade the 12-person selection committee to move Notre Dame back into the top four.
Baylor, which is No. 8, and Michigan, slotted at No. 10, are the other two teams in the top 10.
At this point, it seems unlikely that a team outside the top 10 could jump into the top four by the end of the season, but strange things do seem to happen.
The top four teams in the final rankings released Dec. 6 will qualify for the national championship playoff, with the semifinals scheduled for New Year’s Eve and the title game set for Jan. 12 in Glendale, Ariz.
