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College Football Playoff Rankings 2021: Final Top 25 projections

By Connor Muldowney

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 04: John Metchie III #8 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of the SEC Championship game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 04, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 04: John Metchie III #8 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of the SEC Championship game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 04, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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Dec 4, 2021; Arlington, TX, USA; Baylor Bears linebacker Terrel Bernard (2) celebrates with teammates after the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Big 12 Conference championship game at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 4, 2021; Arlington, TX, USA; Baylor Bears linebacker Terrel Bernard (2) celebrates with teammates after the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Big 12 Conference championship game at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

A lot of the teams in the top 10 happen to be led by relatively new coaches and Michigan State is one of them with Mel Tucker leading the way. The second-year head coach led the Spartans to a 10-2 record after finishing just 2-5 last year and he basically flipped the talent on the roster around in one offseason. The future is right, especially after a New Year’s Six bowl berth in year two and a huge extension for Tucker.

Ole Miss just signed Lane Kiffin to an extension which means that he’ll be the leader in Oxford for a while and that’s bad news for the rest of the SEC because he’s turned the program around almost instantly. A top-10 finish in the playoff rankings and a New Year’s Six berth isn’t too bad for the second-year coach.

If you’re an Oklahoma State fan, you have to feel OK with this loss to Baylor in the Big 12 title game because it turns out the Cowboys wouldn’t have made the playoff even with a win. The Cowboys missed out on winning one for Mike Gundy which has to sting a bit, but it was a heck of a run for this team and a top-10 finish can’t be overlooked.

It had to be excruciatingly painful for Ohio State to watch Michigan win the Big Ten title 42-3 on Saturday over Iowa because the Buckeyes probably thought it would have been them blowing out the Big Ten West champion on Dec. 4. CJ Stroud might be one of the best quarterbacks in the country and Ryan Day has stocked this team with talent, but the Buckeyes will have to settle for a Rose Bowl and wait until next year for a national title run.

Baylor looked like it was going to run away with the Big 12 title after scoring 21 straight points, but Oklahoma State made things interesting and came just inches — literally — short of coming back to beat the Bears. Dave Aranda led Baylor to an 11-2 season in just his second year which is a massive turnaround from the 2-7 campaign in 2020. This team is legit.

Notre Dame had a chance to make the playoff with Marcus Freeman as the new head coach and I think a lot of people were rooting for that with Brian Kelly leaving the Irish high and dry. Unfortunately, Alabama, Cincinnati, and Michigan won which means that the Irish were left on the outside looking in, even with Oklahoma State losing.

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