LSU is out of the College Football Playoff picture and that opens the door for Michigan to take their spot in the top four.
There will be a new team moving into the top four of the College Football Playoff rankings when they are revealed Tuesday night on ESPN. College football bowl projections will also have a new wrinkle. We knew that heading in with No. 1 Alabama playing No. 3 LSU and it was the Crimson Tide who emerged victoriously with a 29-0 win in Death Valley.
The stadium where Les Miles once referred to as the place where opponents dreams go to die is where the Tigers playoff hopes died due to the suffocating Alabama defense and too much Tua Tagovailoa.
Alabama will remain the No. 1 team in the Playoff rankings and No. 2 Clemson will strengthen their grip on the second seed after a 77-16 win over Louisville. Could we be headed for the third National Championship Game in four years between the Crimson Tide and Tigers?
With No. 4 Notre Dame edging Northwestern, the Fighting Irish will move up to the No. 3 seed. Taking the fourth spot will be Michigan who moves up one spot after a 42-7 win over No. 14 Penn State.
College Football Playoff
Cotton Bowl (Dec. 29): No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Michigan
Orange Bowl (Dec. 29): No. 2 Clemson vs. No. 3 Notre Dame
New Year’s Six
Peach Bowl (Dec. 29): West Virginia vs. LSU – This would be a letdown for both teams who had aspirations of winning their conference.
Fiesta Bowl (Dec. 29): UCF vs. Kentucky – UCF is likely headed to the Fiesta after playing in the Peach last year. They’ll meet Kentucky who could be eager to take a trip to a marquee bowl game.
Rose Bowl (Dec. 29): Ohio State vs. Washington State – Ohio State gets to the Rose Bowl because Michigan is in the Playoff after winning the Big Ten. They’ll face projected Pac-12 champ Washington State in what could be a shootout.
Sugar Bowl (Dec. 29): Oklahoma vs. Georgia – Big 12 champ vs. the highest-ranked SEC team not in the Playoff.
The second College Football Playoff rankings will be revealed on Tuesday night at 9 a.m. ET at which point we will have an updated batch of bowl projections to reflect the new rankings.