CFP Rankings: Georgia, Alabama, Michigan State, Oregon get top spots

Georgia, Alabama, Michigan State, and Oregon occupy the top four spots in the first release of the College Football Playoff rankings Tuesday.

Selection committee chair Gary Barta said there "was a lot of consensus for Alabama to be No. 2" despite its one loss, according to Sports Illustrated's Ross Dellenger.

Ohio State and Cincinnati sit just outside of a playoff position as the fifth and sixth seeds.

The Buckeyes lost to Oregon in non-conference play on Sept. 11, although they were ahead of the Ducks in the most recent AP Poll. The Bearcats earned the highest spot ever for a Group of 5 school in the CFP's eight-year history, but their perfect record still wouldn't be enough to get into the semifinals if the season ended after eight games.

"The win at Notre Dame is really impressive," Barta said of Cincinnati. "When you look at their schedule after that, who else did they beat? That was the question."

Michigan and Oklahoma lead the rest of the top 25. The Sooners are ranked eighth and were evidently punished for their lack of conviction in many of their nine wins this season.

UTSA and Penn State are among the notable absentees from the rankings. The Roadrunners are 8-0, but the committee apparently didn't hold their Conference USA opponents in such high regard. The Nittany Lions were in the AP Poll's top five at one point, but James Franklin's program is currently on a three-game losing streak.

Here is the rest of the top 25: