2 teams ranked too high in College Football Playoff rankings, 2 ranked way too low

There was reason to believe that Week 15 of the College Football Playoff rankings would include a major shake-up. More than any we've seen in several weeks.

The reason for that is because of a couple of major upsets that took place in Week 14 of the season. The Miami Hurricanes' dream season suffered a devastating blow when the team lost to Syracuse. Cam Ward was tremendous, but their defense and coaching lagged behind.

Even more amazingly, the Ohio State Buckeyes, somehow, lost at home to a Michigan Wolverines team that doesn't really have a quarterback right now. They were the No. 2 team in the country prior to the week but were sure to drop.

These rankings aren't the end-all-be-all, with one more round of them to come, but they do give an insight as to where the committee currently stands. Most of the rankings make sense, but there are some miscues for fans to gripe with.

Which teams are ranked too low and which ones are coming in too high?

Ranked too low: Arizona State

Easily, the biggest loser in the updated rankings is the Arizona State Sun Devils. They slot in at the No. 15 spot, three places back of the College Football Playoff.

What's most disrespectful about this placement is that the Sun Devils are trailing not one, not two, but three three-loss teams in the SEC. Giving the SEC teams a tiebreaker over a team in the Big 12 would make sense, but it's disrespectful to have three different three-loss SEC teams over the very formidable 10-2 Sun Devils.

What makes Arizona State's disrespect that much crazier is that one of their losses came on the road without their starting quarterback, Sam Leavitt, so not as much stock should be put into that one game.

They have impressive wins on their resume against teams like BYU and Kansas State and haven't done much to be knocked. They deserved better. For now, they must win the Big 12 to make it into the final bracket and even then, they'd be seeded No. 12.

Ranked too high: Ohio State

The Ohio State Buckeyes had the No. 2 ranking firmly in their grasp. After dominating Indiana the week prior, there was little else for them to prove. All they had to do was beat Michigan to have a spot in the Big Ten title game locked in. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.

Not only did the Buckeyes lose, but they were embarrassed. Sure, they only lost by three points, but they lost to a team that got 62 total passing yards from their quarterback. Will Howard struggled, they didn't generate much on the ground, and Jayden Fielding even missed two field goals. Very little went right for the Buckeyes, yet they somehow only dropped four spots.

Should the Buckeyes still be in CFP positioning? Probably. Should they be ranked much lower in the field? Absolutely. A loss as embarrassing as that one, on top of some very uncomfortably close wins earlier this season, should have bumped the Buckeyes lower.

Ranked too low: SMU

The 11-1 SMU Mustangs being ranked at No. 8 overall isn't egregious, but they should be a bit higher, especially with three two-loss teams slotting in front of them.

The biggest knock SMU has to deal with is the fact that they haven't played anybody thanks in large part to their conference. While that's true, to an extent, it's not as if their strength of schedule has been that much easier than a couple of teams in front of them.

For example, the Oregon Ducks rank 60th in ESPN's FPI Strength of Schedule, while SMU is 75th. They should be No. 1 overall as they're undefeated, but the strength of schedule gap isn't large at all. Perhaps more alarmingly, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are ranked 57th there.

Why is Notre Dame ranked four spots ahead of SMU when they're both 11-1 and their strength of schedules are comparable? Sure, the two-loss schools ranked in front of them have faced tougher competition than SMU, but why does SMU get dinged for that and not Notre Dame when their strength of schedules are comparable?

Would SMU be ranked No. 8 if they had Miami or Clemson's reputation? The answer is probably not.

Ranked too high: Alabama

You knew they'd be here. ASU was the most disrespected team in these rankings, and the Alabama Crimson Tide was given the most respect. Again, playing in the SEC should hold some weight, but No. 11 overall? Seriously?

With them being ranked at No. 11, the Crimson Tide have almost certainly locked in their playoff spot. The only way that'll change is presumably if Clemson steals a bid by winning the ACC Tournament game.

The Crimson Tide have faced a tougher schedule than most and have impressive wins on their resume, but at the end of the day, they're 9-3. They're almost certainly going to make it despite losing three games this season. Should they really be getting the nod over some of the teams with one or two losses below them? The SEC bias is in full effect.