What I Learned From First CFP Rankings: Just a Minute

Alabama was the highest-ranked two-loss team when the College Football Playoff rankings came out on Tuesday night.

Katie Windham | Nov 7, 2024

Oct 26, 2024; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide running back Justice Haynes (22) runs the ball against the Missouri Tigers during the fourth quarter at Bryant-Denny Stadium. / Will McLelland-Imagn Images

Welcome to BamaCentral’s "Just a Minute," a video series featuring BamaCentral's Alabama beat writers. Multiple times a week, the writers will group up or film solo to provide their take on a topic concerning the Crimson Tide or the landscape of college sports.

Watch the above video as BamaCentral's Katie Windham discusses what the first iteration of the College Football Playoff rankings in 2024 mean for the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Alabama (6-2, 3-2 SEC) came in at No. 11 in the intial College Football Playoff rankings for the 2024 season. The Crimson Tide is the highest-ranked two-loss team.

What did this teach us about how the CFP committee views Alabama? The Crimson Tide has one of the best wins in the country over No. 3 Georgia, and that victory is carrying a lot of weight on Alabama's resume. Along with the win over the Bulldogs, Alabama also has a ranked win over No. 24 Missouri and will play at No. 15 LSU this weekend.

Alabama's resume and strength of schedule is respected by the committee despite the two losses to Vanderbilt and No. 7 Tennessee.

Because of Alabama's initial ranking at No. 11 and the field being expanded to 12 teams this season, the Crimson Tide is still in control of its own destiny. There are a few potential bid stealers out there, but even with that, if Alabama wins out in its final four games of the regular season (at No. 15 LSU, Mercer, at Oklahoma and Auburn) the Crimson Tide should be in the College Football Playoff.

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Published Nov 7, 2024|Modified Nov 7, 2024

KATIE WINDHAM

Katie Windham is the assistant editor for BamaCentral, primarily covering football, basketball gymnastics and softball. She is a two-time graduate of the University of Alabama and has covered a variety of Crimson Tide athletics since 2019 for outlets like The Tuscaloosa News, The Crimson White and the Associated Press before joining BamaCentral full time in 2021. Windham has covered College Football Playoff games, the Women's College World Series, NCAA March Madness, SEC Tournaments and championships in multiple sports.