College Football Playoff rankings 2022: Projected final Top 25 after Georgia and Michigan dominate, USC and TCU give Ohio State help

Dec 3, 2022; Atlanta, GA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs running back Kenny McIntosh (6), head coach Kirby Smart, and quarterback Stetson Bennett (13) celebrate after a victory in the SEC Championship against the LSU Tigers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /

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LSU Tigers. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports /

Projected College Football Playoff rankings after Week 14: No. 20-16

20. Texas Longhorns

Had Quinn Ewers been healthy all season, you have to wonder how high Texas could’ve climbed this season. At their best, the argument could be made that the Longhorns were the best team in the Big 12. Even still, there are questions now heading into next season now that Bijan Robinson will be gone, especially with Arch Manning arriving to back up Ewers.

19. South Carolina Gamecocks

Hats off to South Carolina for proving everyone wrong with about as strong of a finish to the regular season as any team in the country. After getting worked by Florida, the Gamecocks knocked off both Tennessee and Clemson to move to 8-4 on the season and climb inside the Top 20. This team has flaws but they overcame them and the program has to feel good about Shane Beamer at this point.

18. LSU Tigers

There’s definitely a world in which LSU drops down lower than No. 18 after the SEC Championship Game. After they matched Georgia in the first quarter with a touchdown, they just looked thoroughly outmatched once the Dawgs found their gameplan and even the 20-point final margin of defeat doesn’t tell the story of how one-sided things became. Still, an 9-4 season with a patchwork roster isn’t a bad debut for Brian Kelly.

17. UCLA Bruins

Heading into the final month of the regular season, there was an outside shot that the Bruins could’ve made it into the College Football Playoff. But back-to-back losses to Arizona and then rival USC wrote the end of those hopes for UCLA. A 9-3 finish is nothing to scoff at, but Chip Kelly will have some big questions next year as Dorian Thompson-Robinson departs from the program.

16. Oregon Ducks

Despite getting blown out by Georgia to begin the season, Oregon was another Pac-12 team with legitimate CFP hopes late in the season. Washington put an end to that by outdueling them in Week 11 but it was rival Oregon State coming back from a 21-point deficit to win the artist-formerly-known-as-the-Civil-War that really left Ducks fans feeling a bit deflated about Dan Lanning’s debut season with Bo Nix at the helm.

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