College Football Playoff rankings: Alabama shockingly lands in top 5, Notre Dame at No. 11

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The first College Football Playoff rankings are out, and we now have the first look at what this year’s selection committee thinks of the current field. Week 9 presented some big storylines that put some teams on the ropes heading into the first Saturday of November.

Ohio State took its second loss of the season on Saturday night against USC, and things are looking bleak for Ryan Day and company without Julian Sayin at quarterback. The Buckeyes don’t have any marquee games left on their schedule, but they do play some good defenses that can give them fits if the offense continues to sputter.

Indiana survived another game, but its offense also looks shaky and now the Hoosiers have QB questions after Josh Hoover didn’t finish that win against Minnesota. Elsewhere in college football, Texas Tech won a critical Big 12 tilt against Arizona and SMU fell out of the ACC title race for now with a brutal loss to Syracuse.

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Here are the initial College Football Playoff rankings heading into Week 10, one of the biggest college football slates in recent memory.

1. Miami (FL) (8-0)
2. Georgia (7-1)
3. Utah (8-0)
4. Indiana (8-1)
5. Alabama (6-2)
6. Kentucky (7-1)
7. Texas (6-2)
8. UCLA (8-0)
9. BYU (7-1)
10. Ole Miss (6-2)
11. Notre Dame (7-1)
12. Ohio State (6-2)
13. Tennessee (6-2)
14. LSU (6-2)
15. Texas Tech (7-1)
16. Wake Forest (7-1)
17. Houston (6-2)
18. Missouri (6-2)
19. Iowa (6-2)
20. USC (7-2)
21. South Carolina (5-3)
22. Arizona (6-2)
23. Oregon (5-3)
24. Florida (5-3)
25. Boise State (7-1)

It’s safe to say that this is a shocking first edition of the rankings. Near the bottom of the list, Boise State is getting next to no respect after almost taking an upset at the hands of Texas State on Saturday. However, one-loss New Mexico isn’t even ranked after slotting in at No. 22 in the AP poll, so the Broncos still appear to have the inside track to the final CFP spot.

Up higher, the rankings get stunning and downright confusing in some spots. Notre Dame, despite sitting at 7-1, blowing past most teams and having a one-possession road loss to No. 9 BYU that came down to the final play, is sitting at No. 11. The selection committee is making it crystal clear that it isn’t going to do the same song and dance with the Irish as it did last year, and that 10-2 with no good wins isn’t going to cut it. As a result, Saturday’s home tilt with No. 1 Miami becomes a must-win for Marcus Freeman and company.

UCLA being ranked at No. 8, despite an unbeaten record in the Big Ten and a road win over a ranked Oregon team, came as a surprise, as did both Texas and Alabama being ranked ahead of the Bruins with two losses. The Longhorns weren’t all that surprising, coming in at No. 7 with a non-conference win over No. 12 Ohio State and another victory over No. 10 Ole Miss. But Alabama, with just one ranked win on its resume, coming in at No. 5 was a major shock.

A lot of this confusion will likely be cleared up in Week 10 with seven ranked matchups on the docket for Saturday. Ohio State can make a statement with a win over Oregon, Notre Dame and Miami renew one of college football’s best rivalries, as do BYU and Utah. Four ranked matchups will take place in the SEC with Texas-Missouri, Alabama-LSU, Kentucky-Tennessee and Georgia-Ole Miss.

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