12-Team College Football Playoff Bracket Based on Coaches Poll

9. Ole Miss Rebels at 8. Alabama Crimson Tide

The Alabama Crimson Tide fell to number seven in the Coaches Poll after the shocking defeat to the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday evening. Alabama earns the eight seed in this projection and they now have no margin for error if they are to make the College Football Playoff. Certainly, another loss would eliminate them from hosting a playoff game in the first round. The Crimson Tide would host the Ole Miss Rebels.

Ole Miss loved seeing Tennessee and Alabama slip up this past weekend, as the sting of their loss against Kentucky was removed a bit by the losses of others. Ole Miss has a massive game, probably a playoff eliminator, at LSU this weekend. The winner of this projected first-round showdown gets Texas in the Sugar Bowl.

2. Ohio State Buckeyes - Big Ten Champion

The Ohio State Buckeyes waltzed past the Iowa Hawkeyes with a strong defensive performance and a dominant third quarter, rolling to a 35-7 victory. After leading only 7-0 at the half, the Buckeyes opened things up in the third quarter and cruised to a strong finish. OSU is now 5-0 and they have allowed only 34 points but they face their first serious test of the season with a clash at Oregon in Eugene. The Ducks are one of the few teams that have the athletes to test whether or not Will Howard can perform under pressure and whether or not the Ohio State defense can be had. The Buckeyes are second in the Coaches Poll and grabbed 11 first-place votes. They would await the winner of the seven versus 10 matchup in the Rose Bowl.

2024 National Title Odds: Ohio State +290

3. Miami Hurricanes - ACC Champion

The Miami Hurricanes flirted with disaster for the second straight week and survived. The Hurricanes trailed the California Golden Bears 35-10 in the second half and roared back for a thrilling 39-38 win in Berkeley to remain unbeaten and reach 6-0. Miami’s defense is now a real concern after getting gashed repeatedly for explosive plays by Cal but the ‘Canes continue to find a way to win. They have a bye week before playing at Louisville. The Hurricanes moved up two spots and are now sixth in the Coaches Poll. The Hurricanes would play the winner of the six versus 11 seed first-round matchup.

2024 National Title Odds: Miami +2000

4. Iowa State Cyclones - Big 12 Champion

What to do with the wild Big 12? The new expanded College Football Playoff format guarantees the conference a first-round bye, so someone from the league gets one of the top four seeds and Iowa State knocked off Baylor to remain unbeaten. They are now ranked 13th in the Coaches Poll and that gets them the nod as the four-seed in this projection. Iowa State will get a test this weekend as they play at West Virginia in Primetime. The Mountaineers are suddenly hot but the Cyclones remain 3.5-point favorites. Iowa State would play the winner of the five versus 12 game in the quarterfinals.

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12. Boise State at 5. Oregon Ducks

The Oregon Ducks remain unbeaten after overwhelming the Michigan State Spartans on Friday night in Eugene. The Ducks have stumbled in the red zone on offense and Dillon Gabriel has yet to show that he can perform for sixty minutes against a strong opponent. We’ll learn a whole lot more about that on Saturday night as Oregon hosts Ohio State in Autzen Stadium. The Ducks are up to number three in the Coaches Poll and it will be fascinating to see the fallout from the clash with the Buckeyes. Oregon is the top at-large selection in this projection. They are currently slated to play number 22 (Coaches Poll) Boise State in a rematch of a very hotly-contested regular season game. The winner would advance to the Fiesta Bowl to play Iowa State in the quarterfinals.

2024 National Title Odds: Oregon +900

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11. LSU Tigers at 6. Georgia Bulldogs

The Georgia Bulldogs are the projected six seed after a comfortable win over Auburn and losses by Alabama and Tennessee. Georgia is certainly vulnerable and they are not as dominant on the lines of scrimmage as many assumed they would be this season. However, their only loss is a close defeat at Alabama and they have a dominant win over Clemson which looks better by the week. UGA has Mississippi State this weekend and then they travel to Austin to play Texas. If they lose that game, the Bulldogs would need to beat Ole Miss and Tennessee in November to wrap up a 10-2 record and then see where the chips fall. A resume with losses at Alabama and Texas and then wins over Clemson, Ole Miss and Tennessee would still be really strong.

Georgia is currently number four in the Coaches Poll (strangely, ahead of Alabama, who just beat the Bulldogs), and they would play number 10 LSU, the 11 seed in this projected bracket. The Tigers are 4-1 and are up two spots, appearing in the bracket for the first time since losing to USC. Whether or not LSU is for real is going to be determined very soon. They play Ole Miss on Saturday night and then are at Arkansas, at Texas A&M and hosting Alabama in their next four games.

Week 7: Ole Miss (-3.5) at LSU 

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10. Tennessee Volunteers at 7. Penn State Nittany Lions

Penn State has not been particularly impressive but is unbeaten and has steadily moved up to number five in the Coaches Poll, thanks to the zero in their loss column. The Nittany Lions will finally be tested with a very interesting game at USC on Saturday night. What will happen if Penn State loses to USC and Ohio State but wins comfortably in the remaining ten games? Is that good enough to get in the field? For now, they are the seven seed and would host the Tennessee Volunteers.

The Vols lost at Arkansas and the performance of the offense is now officially a concern. The Razorbacks kept everything in front of them and rarely gave up an explosive play while Nico Iamaleava was unable to elevate his team to a win. The Vols don’t have the toughest draw so one more loss probably eliminates them from the playoff picture. The winner of this game would play the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl.

9. Ole Miss Rebels at 8. Alabama Crimson Tide

The Alabama Crimson Tide fell to number seven in the Coaches Poll after the shocking defeat to the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday evening. Alabama earns the eight seed in this projection and they now have no margin for error if they are to make the College Football Playoff. Certainly, another loss would eliminate them from hosting a playoff game in the first round. The Crimson Tide would host the Ole Miss Rebels.

Ole Miss loved seeing Tennessee and Alabama slip up this past weekend, as the sting of their loss against Kentucky was removed a bit by the losses of others. Ole Miss has a massive game, probably a playoff eliminator, at LSU this weekend. The winner of this projected first-round showdown gets Texas in the Sugar Bowl.