The College Football Playoff committee unveils its first ever top 25 ranking for the 2014 season tonight at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN.
This also includes the four teams that would make the playoff if the season were to have ended last Saturday.
Those four teams would also be projected to go to the two semifinal bowl games — which rotate yearly.
This semifinal bowl games this year are the Rose and Sugar Bowls, which will both be played on New Year’s Day.
The National Championship will be played 11 days later on Jan. 12, 2015.
Let’s take a look at who makes up the committee, the criteria that goes into the rankings and I’ll give my top four teams through week nine.
The Committee:
The playoff committee is made up of 12 members, including former and current athletic directors, former collegiate and NFL players and coaches and former conference commissioners.
There are also a few powerful former members of the United States Government and Armed Forces.
Some of the more recognizable names include former head coach and athletic director at Nebraska Tom Osborne, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and current Wisconsin athletics director Barry Alvarez.
The idea is to eliminate computers from affecting rankings, like the way previous BCS rankings were picked.
It is also important to note that committee members will be recused from participating in votes involving a school’s team if they or an immediate family member receives compensation from the school, or has a professional relationship with that school.
For example, Alvarez will not be able to take part when the committee votes on where to rank Wisconsin.
Criteria:
It’s safe to say that the committee has one of the toughest jobs in college football—picking the top 25 teams out of the 128 FBS schools. Good luck.
But what will the committee emphasize when putting together their list of 25?
According to the playoff’s website:
"The committee will select the teams using a process that distinguishes among otherwise comparable teams by considering conference championships won, strength of schedule, head-to-head competition, comparative outcomes of common opponents (without incenting margin of victory) and other relevant factors that may have affected a team’s performance during the season or likely will affect its postseason performance."
Obviously the most important aspect that can be measured up to this point is strength of schedule, which includes conference and out-of-conference games.
Morgan’s Top Four:
1. Mississippi State: The Bulldogs are one of just four remaining unbeaten teams in the country, and play in the toughest conference in college football.
2. Alabama: Yes, they have one loss, but that came on the road in Oxford, Miss., facing Ole Miss, which — despite losing a close one on the road to LSU this week — still boasts the most complete defense in the country.
3. Florida State: The Seminoles’ win over then-No. 5 Notre Dame proved they were worthy of making the playoff. And they’re riding a 23-game win streak.
4. Oregon: Another one loss team, but in their loss to Arizona three weeks ago they were missing their starting left tackle. The committee has stated that they’ll take into account if a team’s best player is missing during a loss.
Follow Morgan Moriarty on Twitter @Morgan_Moriarty
Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen smiles as the clock winds down during the second half of the Bulldogs' 45-31 win against Kentucky at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Ky., on Saturday.
