OSU junior running back Ezekiel Elliott (15) runs with the ball in a game against Minnesota on Nov. 7 at Ohio Stadium. OSU won, 28-14. Credit: Muyao Shen | Assistant Photo Editor
For at least one more week, Ohio State is the third best football team in the country according to the College Football Playoff selection committee, which released volume two of its now-weekly rankings on Tuesday night.
The Buckeyes were also ranked No. 3 in the initial rankings released last Tuesday.
OSU moved to 9-0 after defeating Minnesota on Saturday night at Ohio Stadium 28-14. The victory, however, was not convincing enough in the eyes of the 12-member committee to warrant any sort of shift in seeding.
Ahead of OSU sits unbeaten Clemson at the No. 1 spot, with one-loss Alabama occupying the second position.
The Tigers, who beat No. 16 Florida State on Saturday, were also the committee’s top team last week in the first installment of the rankings. As for the Crimson Tide, they find themselves positioned two places higher after a convincing 30-16 win over then-No. 2 LSU.
Completing the current four-team playoff is Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish, whose only loss on the season was by two points at the hand’s of Clemson, were No. 5 last week.
Joining OSU in the top 25 are six other members of the Big Ten.
Unbeaten Iowa moved up to No. 5, while Michigan State sank to No. 13 after falling to unranked Nebraska on a last-second touchdown on Saturday. Michigan moved up to No. 14, while Northwestern also saw an improvement in its rank, sliding up to No. 18.
Coming off a 31-24 win, Wisconsin (8-2) entered into the rankings for the first time this season at No. 25. The only losses the Badgers have on the year have come by way of Alabama and Iowa — both of whom are ranked in the top 5.
Until the end of regular season, new rankings will be released each Tuesday, followed by the final rankings on Dec. 6, the day after conference championship games conclude.
The complete top 25 of the second rankings can be found below:
- 1. Clemson
- 2. Alabama
- 3. Ohio State
- 4. Notre Dame
- 5. Iowa
- 6. Baylor
- 7. Stanford
- 8. Oklahoma State
- 9. LSU
- 10. Utah
- 11. Florida
- 12. Oklahoma
- 13. Michigan State
- 14. Michigan
- 15. TCU
- 16. Florida State
- 17. Mississippi State
- 18. Northwestern
- 19. UCLA
- 20. Navy
- 21. Memphis
- 22. Temple
- 23. North Carolina
- 24. Houston
- 25. Wisconsin
