Winners and losers from the first College Football Playoff rankings in 2023

First CFP Rankings Winner: Georgia Bulldogs

Considering that Georgia has been No. 1 in the AP Top 25 all season only for the Selection Committee to usurp them in the first College Football Playoff rankings, this might seem counterintuitive to call the Dawgs a winner.

But they are.

For one, Georgia now has a huge opportunity to build its resumé tremendously over the final month of the season and the Committee helped with that. Missouri coming in at No. 12 is their opponent in Week 10. The week after that, the Bulldogs will face the No. 10-ranked Ole Miss Rebels. That's a huge favor done by these rankings to really elevate those wins should Georgia be able to emerge victorious.

Perhaps more importantly, though, we've seen Kirby Smart showcase his master motivational skills with bulletin-board material. He now has that with the Committee not ranking Georgia at No. 1. I have no doubt that will be used to motivate the Dawgs from here on out and, if history tells us anything from the past two years, it'll probably work like a charm.

First CFP Rankings Loser: Oklahoma Sooners

We saw it coming from a mile away when it comes to the Oklahoma Sooners, but one of the big gripes that some people are going to have with the initial CFP rankings is definitely going to be this team coming in two spots behind the rival Texas Longhorns, a team that Brent Venables' group beat in Red River earlier in October.

Throughout the Top 25, we saw that head-to-head wins were largely honored, particularly in the Top 10. Texas beat Alabama, so the Longhorns are one spot ahead of the Crimson Tide. Washington topped Oregon, so the Huskies -- even perhaps in spite of the eye test otherwise -- are ranked one spot higher. That is not the case with Oklahoma.

When you look at the Texas win over Alabama and some of its other wins in comparison to Oklahoma's resumé this season, you understand the thought process the Selection Committee used to reach these rankings. However, it still is a definite loss for the Sooners, no doubt fueled by last week's upset defeat at the hands of No. 21 Kansas, for them to not have their signature win honored in the rankings.