The initial rankings for the highly anticipated, first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff confirmed what many believed even before the season began: The Southeastern Conference will be represented in the new-look tournament.Indeed, Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, and Alabama combine to make up one-third of the field. But the first rankings also offered some surprises — not the least of which is that the committee might prefer another conference just a little bit more.1. Going big on the Big TenOccupying the top two rankings and three of the top six, the Big Ten was rewarded handsomely by the committee. Undefeated Oregon, with wins over two of the 12 teams currently slated for playoff berths — Boise State and Ohio State — is an unsurprising No. 1.Ohio State’s positioning at No. 2, however, speaks highly of the committee’s assessment of the Big Ten overall. The same goes for No. 6 Penn State, which, before losing to the Buckeyes at home last weekend looked dominant against a somewhat middling schedule.Perhaps the most telling indicator of the committee’s faith in the Big Ten, however, is Indiana at No. 8. The Hoosiers have blown the doors off of all comers, but their best win might be over either 4-4 Maryland or 3-5 UCLA.2. Big dismissal of the Big 12Big 12 pace-setter BYU open the playoff rankings at No. 9, which is the committee’s least defensible decision.A variety of one-loss teams are ranked higher than the 8-0 Cougars, including No. 6 Penn State and No. 5 Texas, neither of which has a win over an opponent ranked by the committee. Fellow undefeated Indiana is ranked one place ahead of BYU despite also having no Top 25 wins.BYU, meanwhile, has two: a road victory over No. 13 SMU and a blowout of No. 19 Kansas State. With no other Big 12 team ranked higher than Iowa State at No. 17, and BYU closing out the season against unranked Utah, Kansas, Arizona State and Houston, the Cougars’ chances of climbing from an incomprehensibly low starting position look bleak.3. Committee not sold on ArmyThe first name revealed on the Tuesday show was No. 25 Army, one of only five undefeated teams remaining. However, the Black Knights are second in line among teams jockeying for the all-important fifth conference champion position.Boise State leads that race, which is no surprise. The Broncos gave No. 1-ranked Oregon all it could handle and routed No. 21 Washington State, another outsider looking to crash the party. (Without an FBS conference membership, Washington State can only make the field with an at-large bid.)Army’s positioning behind Washington State, as well as three-loss Louisville and the fast-fading tandem of Clemson and Missouri is surprising. Army does, however, benefit from closing with more opportunities to bolster its resume than Boise State does. With matchups against Notre Dame, Navy and a potential American Athletic Conference championship game, Army has plenty of room to climb during the radical shifts expected in the next four weeks.
