College Football Playoff Race: Power Ranking Cfp Bubble Teams After First Top 25

After 10 afloat weeks of assemblage football, we person a actual thought of wherever things guidelines for nan upcoming 12-team College Fotoball Playoff.

The 2025 play marks nan 12th autumn pinch nan playoff, and nan 2nd twelvemonth of nan 12-team version of nan event. Some things person changed from past year’s field, which Ohio State ran done to triumph nan nationalist championship. The astir significant: The apical 4 seeds are nary longer reserved for convention champions. The section is still made up of nan 5 highest-ranked convention champions on pinch 7 at-large teams, but nan 4 highest-ranked teams will get byes to nan quarterfinals.

Check present for nan afloat Top 25 rankings arsenic released by nan action committee connected Tuesday night.

More: : Live Reaction to First College Football Playoff Top 25 of nan Season

Bubble talk has been a staple of chat astir nan NCAA hoops tourney each year. Now, pinch nan statement expanding beyond nan apical 4 seeds, acold much teams are successful nan operation for assemblage shot arsenic well. Looking astatine nan caller Top 25, here’s really I’d powerfulness rank nan cluster of teams connected either broadside of nan bubble based connected their résumés and really they’ve performed of late.

No. 1 Ohio State, No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 7 BYU and No. 14 Virginia are nan 4 highest-ranked projected convention champions. No Group of 5 squad made it into nan Top 25, but ESPN broadcast of nan rankings revealed that Memphis is presently projected arsenic that last team, and would make nan section arsenic of today.

Programs successful bold are projected arsenic convention champions based connected nan rankings.

Power ranking College Football Playoff bubble teams aft Week 10

Arch Manning and Texas are nan first squad retired successful nan inaugural 2025 College Football Playoff rankings. / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

1. Notre Dame (6–2); Ranked No. 10

The Fighting Irish looked adjacent to dormant successful nan h2o aft an 0–2 commencement to nan season, pinch a ray schedule and nary opportunity to triumph a convention title up of them. Those 2 concerns stay successful place—the only squad successful nan Top 25 that lays up of Marcus Freeman’s programme is simply a travel to Pitt connected Nov. 15. Right now nan program’s champion triumph was a 10-point triumph vs. No. 19 USC, a bully triumph for judge but not 1 that blows anyone distant erstwhile it comes to ranking at-large teams. Even so, Notre Dame has done precisely what it has needed to do pinch nan manus its been dealt since falling to No. 18 Miami and No. 3 Texas A&M by a mixed 4 points. It’s six wins person travel by an mean of 24 points. Per nan SP+ metric created by ESPN’s Bill Connelly, nan Fighting Irish had a postgame triumph expectancy of 100% successful 4 of those six games. It was 99.5% successful nan USC win, and 99.9% this past Saturday astatine Boston College (25–10). That is dominance.

2. Texas (7–2, 4–1 SEC); Ranked No. 11

For nary different squad has each week—if not each 4th of play—been a existent litmus trial for illustration Steve Sarkisian’s Longhorns. After nan Week 1 crippled against Ohio State, it became clear that nan Texas defense was morganatic but nan discourtesy was a major work successful progress, arsenic was backmost Arch Manning. He continued to struggle done games against UTEP and a Florida squad that would soon occurrence its coach, a 29–21 nonaccomplishment to nan Gators making a College Football Playoff tally look improbable. The Longhorns would rebound to smack down a banged up Oklahoma team—a awesome consequence fixed nan rivalry betwixt nan 2 and nan adjacent proximity they person to 1 different successful nan CFP race. After iffy performances against Kentucky and Mississippi State, Texas put together its champion commencement of nan twelvemonth against Vanderbilt ... and held connected for beloved life to triumph 34–31. Even so, pinch an electrical 2nd half against nan Bulldogs and his champion crippled arsenic starter against nan Commodores, Manning is rounding into shape astatine nan correct clip and Texas has a brace of large wins complete 2 of its main rivals for at-large spots. Plenty is still successful play for nan Longhorns, particularly pinch Georgia and Texas A&M looming.

3. Vanderbilt (7–2, 3–2 SEC); Ranked No. 16

It was difficult to travel distant from nan Commodores’ 34–31 nonaccomplishment astatine Texas and not beryllium impressed pinch Diego Pavia & Co. After falling down 24–3 successful nan early 2nd quarter, Pavia went rustle for rustle pinch Manning, including a 21–0 4th fourth that group up a very close onside footwear effort that could person allowed nan Dores to complete an epic comeback. The slow commencement could upwind up being 1 of nan results that costs Vandy a chance astatine nan playoff, but correct now location is intelligibly not overmuch separating Clark Lea’s squad from immoderate of nan different second-tier clubs successful nan SEC. Style points matter and Vanderbilt would do good to support its ft connected nan state against Auburn and Kentucky to effort and dress up immoderate crushed earlier nan play finale astatine Tennessee.

4. Oklahoma (7–2, 3–2 SEC); Ranked No. 12

The Sooners person survived successful nan weeks since nan manus wounded to backmost John Mateer, getting nan backmost back successful clip for nan Texas game. He’s stabilized nan position successful wins against South Carolina and Tennessee, but nan OU discourtesy hasn’t looked nan aforesaid since nan injury, which required surgery. The Sooners haven’t surgery 359 yards of discourtesy successful nan 4 games since, and were wholly stymied by a flawed Texas squad 23–6 successful nan Red River Rivalry. Ultimately, Oklahoma owns its ain destiny; if nan Sooners hit Alabama, Missouri and LSU down nan stretch, they will person much than proven their playoff-caliber mettle. Right now, they are a difficult squad to trust, moreover coming disconnected of a bully triumph complete Tennessee.

5. Utah (7–2, 4–2 Big 12); Ranked No. 13

Quietly, nan Utes person climbed backmost up nan rankings, buoyed by a high-profile blowout of a Cincinnati squad antecedently undefeated successful convention play aft hosting College GameDay last Saturday. It is unclear really galore at-large bids will genuinely beryllium up for grabs for Big 12 schools—at nan very least, nan convention is successful overmuch amended position than nan ACC aft 1 week of rankings, though nan Big Ten and SEC are dominating arsenic expected. Utah’s early losses to Texas Tech and BYU puts a headdress connected its ceiling, but back-to-back wins by 46 and 31 points complete Colorado and Cincy bespeak that nan squad is putting it together astatine nan correct time. There is still clip for nan Utes to gaffe into nan Big 12 title crippled if they get immoderate help, but pinch 3 teams up of them successful nan nonaccomplishment column, they whitethorn person to proceed to laic it connected teams done nan extremity of November—easier said than done.

6. Louisville (7–1, 4–1 ACC); Ranked No. 15

There whitethorn not beryllium a one-loss powerfulness convention squad receiving little attraction than nan Cardinals. Right now it is difficult to build an ACC résumé that would rustle distant nan action committee—that is clear pinch really nan rankings are treating nan conference, which is hurtling towards one-bid convention status. Louisville has done good for itself though, scoring value wins complete Miami and Pitt pinch its only nonaccomplishment coming by 3 to projected convention champ Virginia. The Cardinals are 1 of six zero aliases one-loss teams successful ACC play vying for a convention title appearance, truthful nan roadworthy up is murky, but they’ve been arsenic awesome arsenic immoderate squad successful nan convention this year, moreover if they’ve flown nether nan radar compared to nan Hoos, Canes and nan last squad connected this bubble watch...

7. Georgia Tech (8–1, 5–1 ACC); Ranked No. 17

The Yellow Jackets person been surviving connected nan edge, and it spot them connected Saturday erstwhile they dropped their first crippled of nan play to NC State, 48–36. The squad remains successful very bully style to scope nan ACC title game, but nan nonaccomplishment to nan Wolfpack whitethorn destruct their chance to snag an at-large bid, particularly arsenic it resulted successful their CFP rankings debut each nan measurement down astatine No. 17, beneath a brace of different ACC teams. Part of nan problem: an early-season résumé that has grounded to clasp up, pinch Clemson astatine consequence of missing a vessel and teams for illustration Colorado and Virginia Tech disappointing. They tin alteration their fortunes down nan stretch, pinch a crippled vs. Pitt and a nonconference conflict pinch Georgia to extremity nan season. The ACC title is looking for illustration nan astir clear way for Brent Key’s programme though, arsenic nan committee was intelligibly not overly impressed pinch nan constitution of Tech’s 8–0 start.

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