College Football Playoff And Bowl Projections After Week 14: how Will Committee View Ole Miss?

The regular play successful assemblage shot has travel to a adjacent and what a thrilling decorativeness it was from seashore to coast. 

A fistful of programs locked up vessel eligibility successful nan last minutes of their last crippled to deed that elusive 6–6 mark, while others played their measurement into nan College Football Playoff bubble pinch memorable upsets and rivalry wins. No matter what broadside of nan coin you fell connected successful position of nan scoreboard, nan past play was 1 wherever you had to springiness acknowledgment for this athletics that ne'er fails to nutrient unthinkable results. It’s a joyousness to watch and moreover amended to travel on if you don’t person immoderate rooting interests.

Now comes nan overmuch harder portion successful sorting retired nan postseason destination for each 82 eligible teams. Much of that will people commencement Tuesday pinch nan CFP action committee’s latest rankings starring into nan convention title games. That’s wherever we will commencement pursuing nan news that Lane Kiffin is so leaving Mississippi for LSU. 

The nonaccomplishment of nan Rebels’ caput coach and respective assistants has a chance to earnestly effect their seeding. It should not successful immoderate measurement hamper nan team’s expertise to make nan playoff field—they’ve earned it and nan bubble is excessively analyzable arsenic is—but it is wrong nan committee’s protocols to powerfully consider. What would that look for illustration successful practice? 

It would apt springiness Notre Dame a location crippled and group up a juicy first-round crippled involving SEC title crippled subordinate Alabama walking to South Bend successful nan mediate of December. Now, location are plentifulness of conspiracy theorists who judge nan CFP is simply a TV show for ESPN and each determination flows from that (it doesn’t), but there’s nary denying that each progressive would use from seeing those 2 bluebloods quadrate disconnected this season. Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Oregon each stay successful statement to big a game, but nan committee could look to debar a rematch of a crippled we’ve already seen (Ole Miss astatine Oklahoma) and alternatively driblet nan Rebels down to nan No. 11 seed to make them play astatine Kyle Field against nan Aggies. 

By doing that, nan committee would reaffirm that, well, you shouldn’t suffer nan cardinal figures of a squad which has made a tally to nan playoff connected nan eve of Selection Sunday. The elemental truth is that this type of Ole Miss isn’t nan 1 we’ve seen crossed 12 games. It can’t be. Dropping nan Rebels down protects nan bracket and gives america immoderate awesome games from nan first information done to nan semifinals nary matter what.

It besides helps successful 1 different facet by clearing up nan bubble—further separating nan Fighting Irish from Miami, which has made nan lawsuit for inclusion and has that head-to-head triumph successful August. No matter what happens betwixt now and adjacent Sunday, we’ve seen a batch of unprecedented worldly and it appears arsenic though that won’t beryllium stopping anytime soon.

Finally, from nan CFP decisions will travel nan remainder of nan vessel image that should characteristic immoderate awesome matchups. Imagine Diego Pavia and 10-win Vanderbilt taking connected nan Hurricanes successful nan Gator Bowl for nan correct to beryllium nan champion non-playoff squad this season? The Citrus Bowl feels beautiful overmuch locked into Texas-Michigan arsenic it has been for weeks. Who doesn’t want to spot either Dabo Swinney aliases Eli Drinkwitz person a vat of condiments dumped connected their caput successful nan Mayo Bowl? 

Taking each that into account, present is really Sports Illustrated sees nan playoff and each of nan different 35 vessel games coming together to shape nan postseason image successful 2025–26 aft Week 14.

1. Ohio State
2. Georgia
3. Indiana
4. Texas Tech 
5. Oregon
6. Texas A&M
7. Oklahoma 
8. Notre Dame 
9. Alabama 
10. Virginia
11. Ole Miss
12. North Texas

First Round

College Football Bowl Projection After Week 14

More College Football from Sports Illustrated

Listen to SI’s caller assemblage sports podcast, Others Receiving Votes, beneath aliases on Apple and Spotify. Watch nan show on SI’s YouTube channel.