Computer rankings split on who should be CFP No. 1
The initial College Football Playoff rankings are set to debut Tuesday night with a bit of early intrigue.
Will Tennessee be No. 1? It’ll be good for discussion this week because things will begin to work themselves out Saturday. The Vols will face AP No. 1 Georgia in Athens to determine the SEC East front-runner.
As we look ahead to the 6 p.m. CT College Football Playoff rankings release set to air on ESPN, let’s take a look at a variety of rankings used in the past. The six computer rankings that once factored into the BCS formula continue to evaluate college football’s best and they offer a variety of opinions.
Four different teams are ranked No. 1 in the six rankings with Ohio State being the only one topping more than one. Georgia, Clemson and Tennessee each made one No. 1 ranking.
For Alabama, there was a range from a high point at No. 2 in the Sagarin Ratings to No. 7 in the Colley Matrix, Billingsley Rankings and Anderson and Hester rankings.
The Vols were No. 1 according to Anderson and Hester but as low as No. 5 in the Massey Ratings and Massey Ratings.
See the full top-10 rankings of the six computer rankings.
| Sagarin | Massey | Colley | Billingsley | Wolfe | Anderson/Hester |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Ohio St | 1. Ohio St. | 1. Georgia | 1. Ohio St. | 1. Clemson | 1. Tennessee |
| 2. Alabama | 2. Georgia | 2. Clemson | 2. Tennessee | 2. Tennessee | 2. Clemson |
| 3. Georgia | 3. Alabama | 3. TCU | 3. Clemson | 3. Georgia | 3. Ohio State |
| 4. Tennessee | 4. Michigan | 4. Ohio St. | 4. TCU | 4. TCU | 4. TCU |
| 5. Michigan | 5. Tennessee | 5. Tennessee | 5. Georgia | 5. Ohio St. | 5. Georgia |
| 6. Oregon | 6. TCU | 6. Michigan | 6. Michigan | 6. Alabama | 6. Michigan |
| 7. Utah | 7. Clemson | 7. Alabama | 7. Alabama | 7. Oregon | 7. Alabama |
| 8. Clemson | 8. Kansas St. | 8. USC | 8. Ole Miss | 8. Michigan | 8. Oregon |
| 9. Texas | 9. Penn St. | 9. Oregon | 9. Oregon | 9. USC | 9. Ole Miss |
| 10. USC | 10. Ole Miss | 10. UCLA | 10. Kansas St. | 10. UCLA | 10. USC |
Another social media account takes it a step further by working the full BCS formula and generating a complete a full top 25 for how things would have looked before the playoff arrived in 2014.
The simulated BCS ranking from @BCSKnowHow on Twitter has Georgia narrowly ahead of Ohio State with Tennessee third and Michigan fourth. Alabama is No. 6.
A year ago, the simulated BCS top 25 from @BCSKnowHow had the same top six teams as the playoff committee in the final rankings.
Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.