CFB Playoff Picture 2024-25: Standings, Scenarios, Bracket Predictions After Week 12

Week 12 was an unusually calm weekend at the top of college football.

None of the programs ranked in the top 15 suffered a defeat to an unranked foe, although the top-ranked Oregon Ducks only won by three against the Wisconsin Badgers.

The Georgia Bulldogs won the most consequential game of Week 12 by two touchdowns over the Tennessee Volunteers.

Georgia's win should cause the latest shuffle in the SEC hierarchy when the College Football Playoff rankings come out on Tuesday.

Both UGA and Tennessee can get into the 12-team field still, but UGA has a stronger case after Saturday's win.

No. 1 Oregon (Big Ten champion)

No. 2 Texas (SEC champion)

No. 3 Miami (ACC champion)

No. 4 BYU (Big 12 champion)

No. 12 Boise State vs. No. 5 Ohio State

No. 11 Tennessee vs. No. 6 Penn State

No. 10 Georgia vs. No. 7 Notre Dame

No. 9 Indiana vs. No. 8 Alabama

Georgia bounced back from its Week 11 loss to the Ole Miss Rebels with a win over Tennessee at home.

UGA now owns two victories over top 10 opposition, as well as a top 15 win from Week 1 over the Clemson Tigers.

However, the Bulldogs also suffered defeats at the hands of Ile Miss and the Alabama Crimson Tide, so their exact position in the rankings will be tough to pinpoint.

At minimum, UGA saved itself from dropping out of the top 12 and took down one of the teams in front of it in the process.

Georgia should win its next two games, which would put it at 10-2 and likely out of the SEC Championship Game. That should be enough to get it into the playoff.

As for Tennessee, a 10-2 record should get it into the playoff as well, but it could be the last at-large team in if slots in behind UGA in the newest rankings on Tuesday.

Ohio State set the tone for a business-as-usual Saturday for the top programs in college football with a 31-7 win over the Northwestern Wildcats.

The win set up the Buckeyes for their massive Week 13 clash with the Indiana Hoosiers, who had off on Saturday.

Ohio State is now 9-1 and it held six opponents to single-digit point totals. It will take an incredible effort to slow down Indiana's offense next Saturday.

A win over Indiana would likely confirm Ohio State's spot in the CFB Playoff, regardless of what happens in the Big Ten Championship Game.

A rematch with the Oregon Ducks is looming for the Buckeyes. They would be the top two teams in the Big Ten standings if OSU beats Indiana.

There's still a good chance that the Big Ten puts four teams into the playoff because Indiana is still undefeated and the Penn State Nittany Lions' lone loss came against the Buckeyes.

Colorado continued to make its case as a playoff contender with its blowout win over Utah.

Travis Hunter and Co. put up 49 points to move to 8-2 and two wins away from the Big 12 Championship Game.

Deion Sanders' team has won four consecutive games and could potentially crack the top 15 in Tuesday's rankings update.

The Buffaloes are expected to reach 10-2, and if that is the case, they should be on the fringe of the top 12 by the first week of December.

However, Colorado likely needs to win out because the Big 12 is likely a one-bid league given all the parity across the SEC and the four strong teams in the Big Ten.

The assumption for most of the season is that Boise State will be the Group of Five representative and the No. 12 overall seed.

However, an argument could be made that the Tulane Green Wave are playing better football than the Broncos at the moment.

Tulane cracked the CFB Playoff Top 25 on Tuesday and it reinforced its dominance atop the American Athletic Conference with a 35-0 win over the Navy Midshipmen.

The Green Wave are already locked into the AAC Championship Game versus the Army Black Knights. They have one more regular-season game against the Memphis Tigers on November 28 to impress the selection committee members.

Tulane probably needs a Boise State loss at some point to close the gap between it and the Broncos in the rankings. The gap in the Week 12 rankings was 12 spots between the Broncos and Green Wave.