Three of the six teams ranked atop the first set of playoff rankings have entered the playoff at No. 1. The most recent team to do it was Alabama in 2018, though the Tide lost to Clemson in the national title game.
Ohio State is at No. 3 in the AP Top 25 but has played four games. Clemson, at 7-1, has played twice as many games as the Buckeyes because of the Big Ten’s delayed season start. That head start is a big reason why the Tigers are ahead of the Buckeyes.
Texas A&M is at No. 5 and Florida is at No. 6. The Aggies beat the Gators in College Station earlier this season.
Cincinnati is the top-ranked Group of Five team at No. 7. The Cougars came in at a surprising 14th in the rankings thanks to their weak pandemic-induced schedule.
Northwestern is at No. 8 in the playoff rankings, three spots higher than it is in the AP poll. Georgia is at No. 9; four spots higher than it is in the AP poll. Miami is at No. 10 in both sets of rankings.
