Here’s how the Week 11 College Football Playoff bracket would look under the 12-team format

What would the College Football Playoff look like if we applied the 12-team bracket to the Week 11 rankings? Matchups in the expanded field would be wild.

The newest College Football Playoff rankings are a lot more clear than the first edition. Georgia’s win over Tennessee and Clemson’s loss to Notre Dame shook up the Top 4 spots and opened the door for TCU to step on up.

There’s still a ton to sort out before the final playoff spots are solidified. There would be less to stress over if the 12-team playoff was already in place.

Soon enough, 12 teams will vie for college football’s top prize. For now, we have to just dream of what a 12-team field would look like based on the Week 11 rankings.

Week 11 College Football Playoff with a 12-team format

1. Georgia (BYE)
2. Ohio State (BYE)
3. TCU (BYE)
4. Oregon (BYE)
5. Michigan vs. No. 12 Tulane
6. Tennessee vs. No. 11 Ole Miss
7. LSU vs. No. 10 Clemson
8. USC vs. No. 9 Alabama

Here’s a quick 12-team playoff format refresher: The top four seeds will be given to the top four conference champions. The final eight teams in the field will include the fifth Power 5 conference champion and the highest-ranked Group of 5 champion, along with six at-large teams.

Last week, Tennessee held the top spot. Georgia changed that by knocking their SEC rival down several pegs.

Now, the Bulldogs sit pretty at No. 1 with Ohio State, TCU and Oregon also receiving first-round byes. The Ducks benefitted most from Clemson’s upset at the hands of Notre Dame.

First-round games would be between Michigan and Tulane, Tennessee and Ole Miss, LSU and Clemson and USC and Alabama.

The Wolverines would be heavily favored against the Green Wave, the highest-ranked G5 champion, and expected to move on to a quarterfinal against Oregon.

Do you like offense? Then Tennessee and Ole Miss is the matchup for you. Those two could get into an entertaining shootout with the winner moving on to another likely high-flying matchup with TCU.

The third first-round game is a national championship rematch between Clemson, the presumptive ACC champion, and LSU. An LSU win would set up a BCS-era championship game rematch between the Tigers and Ohio State.

The last time Alabama and USC met it was a bloodbath but the Trojans have Lincoln Riley and the Crimson Tide are looking vulnerable. The last time Riley faced Georgia, his Sooners and the Bulldogs played one of the most entertaining games of all time in the Rose Bowl.

1. Georgia vs. USC/Alabama
2. Ohio State vs. LSU/Clemson
3. TCU vs. Tennessee/Ole Miss
4. Oregon vs. Michigan/Tulane

Would we be headed for a chalk semifinal slate? Right now, I would take the Volunteers over the Horned Frogs while the Buckeyes and Ducks certainly aren’t infallible.

Basically, the team to beat is still very much Georgia. It’s their championship to lose whether 12 teams are involved or just four.