The College Football Playoff Selection Committee will release its final rankings on Sunday, but the updated rankings from the AP Top 25 mark the penultimate edition of the rankings that will get one last refresh after the bowl season. With the regular season and conference championship games fully in the books, the AP voters have declared Georgia to be the near-unanimous No. 1 team in college football.
The Bulldogs earned 62 of 63 first-place votes after finishing 13-0 with a 50-30 win against LSU in the SEC Championship Game. Michigan earned the other first-place vote after winning the Big Ten for the second straight season on Saturday night, while TCU held its position at No. 3 despite losing in the Big 12 Championship Game to Kansas State. While TCU held steady after defeat, there was plenty of shake up elsewhere in the top 10.
Though neither team was in action on Saturday, Ohio State moved to No. 4 and Alabama returned to the top five with a bump up to No. 5. That movement was made possible by USC's drop from No. 4 to No. 8 after losing to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game, and the Utes saw the biggest week-to-week adjustment within the top 25 moving up five spots to No. 7.
Near the end of the rankings, the poll saw some changes as well with the voters dropping North Carolina and UCF after conference championship game losses, clearing the way for Sun Belt Champion Troy and NC State to break into the top 25.
AP Top 25
- Georgia (62 first-place votes)
- Michigan
- TCU
- Ohio State
- Alabama
- Tennessee
- Utah
- USC
- Penn State
- Clemson
- Kansas State
- Washington
- Florida State
- Tulane
- Oregon
- LSU
- Oregon State
- UCLA
- Notre Dame
- South Carolina
- Texas
- UTSA
- Troy
- Mississippi State
- NC State
Others receiving votes: North Carolina (39), UCF (36), Cincinnati (32), Ole Miss (27), Fresno State (25), Purdue (17), South Alabama (17), Illinois (11), Boise State (6), Pittsburgh (4), Minnesota (2), James Madison (1)