FSU rejoins UGA, U-M, Washington in CFP top 4
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Andrea Adelson, ESPN Senior Writer
Florida State moved back into the top four and Ohio State dropped four spots to No. 6 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night.
Georgia remained No. 1, while Michigan moved up one spot to No. 2 and Washington is No. 3. The Wolverines beat the rival Buckeyes 30-24 on Saturday to clinch a spot in the Big Ten championship game and deal a big blow to Ohio State’s playoff hopes.
“As we look at it, it was a really good weekend, rivalry weekend, you get a little bit of everything,” CFP committee chair Boo Corrigan said on ESPN’s rankings release show. “What a great season it’s been so far.”
The Buckeyes were ranked No. 1 in the first CFP rankings Oct. 31. Ohio State also lost to Michigan last year but made it into the playoff after USC lost in the Pac-12 championship game. There is one key difference from last year: Ohio State dropped to No. 5 after the loss to Michigan. This year, the Buckeyes will need more help to finish in the top four.
That would include a Florida State loss to Louisville in the ACC championship game Saturday night in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Seminoles played their first game without starting quarterback Jordan Travis on Saturday against rival Florida, and while new starter Tate Rodemaker looked shaky at times, Florida State found a way to win 24-15.
“Different team without Jordan Travis,” Corrigan said of the Seminoles. “It’s more than one player, but obviously, they are a different team without Jordan Travis.”
The big question headed into Tuesday night’s rankings was how the committee would view the Seminoles with Rodemaker behind center. After dropping to No. 5 last week — based on what the committee said was Washington’s stronger strength of schedule — Florida State was able to get back into the top four with the Ohio State loss and stay ahead of the four one-loss teams stacked behind. That is seemingly good news for its playoff hopes should it remain undefeated.
Every conference championship game this weekend is bound to have playoff implications — starting with the SEC championship between Georgia and No. 8 Alabama in Atlanta on Saturday.
The Pac-12 championship game between Washington and No. 5 Oregon on Friday night is likely to produce one playoff team as well. The Huskies beat the Ducks earlier this year at home 36-33 in a game that went down to the final play. Oregon has had far more decisive wins than Washington down the stretch. If the Ducks win, as the highest-ranked one-loss team, they would all but assuredly be in.
“Oregon has continued to dominate,” Corrigan said. “With the season that [Ducks quarterback] Bo Nix is having, they have continued to impress with both the offense and the defense.”
Michigan plays No. 16 Iowa in the Big Ten championship game on Saturday. A win and the Wolverines would have their third straight CFP appearance.
As for the Big 12 championship game Saturday between No. 7 Texas and No. 18 Oklahoma State, the Longhorns need to win and hope for some help above them, too.
Tulane remains the top-ranked Group of 5 school at No. 22. The Green Wave play SMU in the AAC championship game Saturday. A win would all but ensure a spot in a New Year’s Six game for the second straight season.
The final CFP rankings will be announced Sunday (noon ET, ESPN).
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Max Olson
San Jose State wide receiver Danny Scudero, the leading receiver in FBS this season, will enter the NCAA transfer portal when it opens in January, he announced Friday.
The 5-foot-9, 174-pound redshirt sophomore caught 88 passes for 1,291 yards and 10 touchdowns in his first season with the Spartans, becoming a semifinal for the Biletnikoff Award and earning first-team All-Mountain West honors.
Scudero is expected to be one of the more coveted wide receivers available when the transfer portal officially opens on Jan. 2 and has two more seasons of eligibility remaining.
Scudero spent two years at Sacramento State before transferring to San Jose State after the 2024 season. He broke out with 189 receiving yards to open the season against Central Michigan and surpassed 100 yards in five more games, including a career-high 215 and two touchdowns against Hawaii.
Scudero’s 88 receptions ranked fourth-most in FBS, and he leads all receivers this season with 16 catches of 30 or more yards.
The Spartans produced the No. 14 passing offense in FBS this season but went 3-9 in their second year under coach Ken Niumatalolo.
North Carolina offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens and special teams coordinator Mike Priefer will not return next season, with the school announcing the departure of both assistants after a 4-8 season in Bill Belichick’s college coaching debut.
“We want to thank Coach Kitchens and Coach Priefer for their commitment and many contributions to our program and student-athletes,” Belichick said in a statement. “We wish them both nothing but the best in their future endeavors.”
North Carolina’s offense was one of the worst in the country, ranking 119th in the FBS in scoring (19.3 PPG) and 129th in total offense (288.8 YPG).
The Tar Heels had special teams issues coming down the stretch too, notably with Duke running a fake field goal to set up a late winning touchdown and NC State successfully running a fake punt for a first down the following week.
Kitchens, who served as Cleveland Browns coach in 2019, had been with the Tar Heels since 2023 and was the interim coach for their Fenway Bowl loss at the end of the 2024 season. Belichick was hired as the new head coach earlier that month.
Priefer was a longtime NFL special teams coach who followed Belichick to Chapel Hill but lasted just one season on the job.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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