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First College football playoffs The rankings have been released and the defending champions are at the top of the rankings.
Ohio State Buckeyes were ranked No. 1 when ESPN released its projected 12-team bracket Tuesday night. The 2024 champions, who defeated Notre Dame in the championship game earlier this year, had a stellar performance, starting 8-0 to no one's surprise.
But perhaps one of the best storylines this season comes from the No. 2 ranked Indiana Hoosiers. Head coach Curt Cignetti's group has had a phenomenal start to the year and they lead the Big Ten at 9-0 behind the play of Heisman candidate quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
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Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day watches the second half of a game against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Gies Memorial Stadium in Champaign on Oct. 11, 2025. (IMAGN)
Rounding out the top four seeds to receive first-round byes in the CFP are No. 3 Texas A&M and No. 4 Alabama.
The SEC is well represented in debut rankings. Georgia is ranked fifth, followed by Lane Kiffin's Ole Miss Rebels in sixth.
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Rounding out the top 10 is BYU, the seventh team to lead the Big 12 with a perfect 8-0 record; Texas Tech; Oregon; and the Fighting Irish in 10th place.
Notre Dame may have lost its first two games of the season, but the Irish have won six straight as a big team. Their first two losses came to the Aggies and No. 18 Miami in the opener.
Talking about HurricanesThey have the same number of losses as the Fighting Irish, but a recent overtime loss to SMU dropped them in the rankings.
Mississippi head coach Lane Kiffin watches his team play against Oklahoma during the first half in Norman, Okla., Oct. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)
Arch Manning and the No. 11 Texas Longhorns are on the cusp, especially with the team's win over No. 16 Vanderbilt. The No. 12 Oklahoma Sooners are also close.
With each Power Four conference having its own representative, ACC leader Virginia is ranked 14th. With all of the top 25 teams coming from the Power Four conference, the CFP committee named Memphis the best team in the Group of Five.
However, this is not the same format as previous college football seasons, as the committee is using a direct seeding model this time around. The top four teams in the final rankings, regardless of which conference they play in, will receive a first-round bye.
Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith celebrates after defeating the Penn State Nittany Lions at Ohio Stadium in Columbus on November 1, 2025. (Image)
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As of the current rankings, Memphis will face Georgia, Virginia will play Ole Miss, Notre Dame will travel to BYU, and Oregon will take on Texas Tech.
Of course, this is just the first of many rankings to come. The bracket will be completed on Dec. 7, the day after the conference championship games.
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