Projected CFP rankings after Week 2: Best win, worst loss, most worrying

Week 2 of the college football slate had plenty of ranked teams and College Football Playoff hopefuls land in dangerous spots.

Notre Dame suffered an upset. So did Georgia Tech, Iowa and Kansas. LSU struggled with an FCS team. Alabama, Oregon, Kansas State, Oklahoma State and Oklahoma flirted with disaster.

What does it all mean? Well, it's still very early in the grand scheme of the 2024 season. The rankings are made to change. We've got a long way to go. That's not stopping us from making some playoff predictions and awarding superlatives for the week.

Projected 12-team College Football Playoff rankings after Week 2

Most impressive win: Texas over Michigan

There's no question here. Texas went into the Big House and embarrassed the defending national champions.

We all knew Michigan's offense was a question mark. They've got two quarterbacks, which really means they've got none. The Texas defense shut them down as expected. Limiting the run game to 80 yards was big.

What was really jarring was seeing Texas' offense carve up the Wolverine defense. Quinn Ewers tossed three touchdowns to three different receivers as the Longhorns went 10-of-16 on third down.

Ewers' Heisman candidacy is well and truly off the ground. The Longhorns' College Football Playoff contention is clear.

The only problem? They'll have to go through Georgia to get a bye as the SEC Champion.

Most costly loss: Notre Dame to Northern Illinois

Yeah, the No. 5 team in the country losing to a 28-point underdog like Northern Illinois is definitely costly.

One loss isn't going to doom Notre Dame's playoff hopes, but their schedule doesn't really lend itself to a two-loss bid. Their Texas A&M win isn't likely to look any better than it does now.

Georgia Tech just suffered a loss. Florida State is a mess. Those teams aren't resumé builders. And the Irish go to USC to end the season. That game looks more difficult after watching the Trojans against LSU.

I see another loss coming for Notre Dame and that's a likely elimination.

Most concerning win: Penn State over Bowling Green

Penn State's defense was the foundation of all those 10-win seasons James Franklin has racked up. So it's a major concern that the Nittany Lions' defense against Bowling Green looked so vulnerable.

PSU gave up 254 passing yards to Connor Bazelak in a 34-27 win.

The problem for Penn State is their schedule. They're going to face USC on the road and Ohio State at home. If they lose both of those games, they have no margin of error with the rest of the Big Ten slate.

Franklin is renowned for his 10-2 habit. So it's certainly possible. But he did that was stout defenses. If the defense has more of these performances in them, this could be the year they lose three.

Oregon is an honorable mention here. They've had to survive each of the first two weeks and haven't looked good doing it. They're officially on upset alert

Most likely to fall out next week: Tulane

I'm giving Tulane the No. 12 spot because they played Kansas State so tight and Liberty struggled with New Mexico State. Frankly, the Green Wave were unlucky to not tie the game in the final seconds and take Kansas State to overtimes. A Group of 5 team that plays a Power 4 squad that tough catches the eye.

Unfortunately for Tulane, they get another uphill climb in Week 3 with the Oklahoma Sooners. Keeping their playoff hopes alive depends on keeping it close with OU as well.

Two losses will be hard for any Group of 5 team to overcome in the rankings, especially if one of them is a blowout.

Most likely to make the playoff: Utah

I am a Kyle Whittingham believer. Utah is winning the Big 12. Utah is earning an automatic bid to the College Football Playoff.

Others would argue for Georgia here. And trust me, I'm expecting the Bulldogs to win the SEC. But they have a much tougher road and more things can go wrong for them in a loaded conference.

The Utes, on the other hand, have a chance to roll through the Big 12. The only two ranked teams on their schedule are No. 16 Oklahoma State and No. 20 Arizona. They'd only face No. 17 Kansas State in the conference title game.

The Cowboys have looked shaky so far, needing overtime to beat Arkansas solely because of sloppy play and miscues. Kansas State barely survived Tulane. Meanwhile, Utah was in the process of battering Baylor before Cam Rising had to come out with a finger injury.

That finger is the only road block for Utah. The good news is X-rays came back negative, so it's not expected to be an issue for long.

I wanted to find a place for another Big 12 team in the bracket, but which team is that? No one is standing out in the conference well enough to suggest they can get two teams in. Same goes for the ACC outside of Miami.