What was uncertain heading into these first rankings was which team would follow the Ducks. Georgia and Ohio State both had strong cases with respective road wins against Texas and Penn State and narrow road losses to Alabama and Oregon.

With three or four games remaining in the regular season for the top playoff contenders, chaos across the Power Four could upend this final stretch toward the national championship. And while the playoff selection committee will use the same decision-making process as during the four-team era,