College Football Playoff Rankings make history as Alabama, Clemson tumble

Alabama and Clemson made history when the new College Football Playoff rankings were announced

The latest College Football Playoff rankings reveal was unique in the short history of the sport's newest postseason arrangement.

For the first time ever in the short history of the playoff rankings, which is to say since 2014, neither Clemson or Alabama were featured in the top six.

Alabama is coming off a one-point overtime loss at LSU last weekend, when it was the No. 6 ranked team in the previous CFP top 25 poll.

Clemson, which came into last weekend's games as the No. 4 ranked team, lost on the road to unranked Notre Dame.

Related: College Football Playoff Rankings for Week 11: Georgia, Ohio State take the lead

With that loss, Clemson fell six spots to the No. 10 position in the selection committee's second rankings, while Alabama fell three spots to No. 9 overall.

Since the College Football Playoff rankings and the four-team semifinal were created back in 2014, Clemson has not been included in the playoff just twice, in the debut semifinal and in 2021, while Alabama was kept out of the CFP on just one occasion, for the 2019 postseason.

And now, as the Crimson Tide and Tigers fall further outside the top four, it appears we could be on the verge of the first-ever College Football Playoff semifinals that don't include at least one of those programs.

Alabama vs. Clemson in the College Football Playoff era

Alabama and Clemson famously faced each other four straight times in the College Football Playoff.

2015-16: No. 2 Alabama defeated No. 1 Clemson, 45-40, in the CFP National Championship Game following the 2015 season.

2016-17: No. 2 Clemson returned the favor by beating No. 1 Alabama in the National Championship Game, 35-31, on a famous game-winning throw from Deshaun Watson to Hunter Renfrow in the end zone as time expired.

2017-18: No. 1 Clemson was no match for 4th ranked Alabama, who routed the Tigers, 24-6, in the 2018 Sugar Bowl CFP semifinal.

2018-19: No. 2 Clemson handed Nick Saban his worst defeat at Alabama by trouncing the Tide, 44-16, in the National Championship Game.

College Football Playoff Rankings

1. Georgia
2. Ohio State
3. Michigan
4. TCU
5. Tennessee
6. Oregon
7. LSU
8. USC
9. Alabama
10. Clemson
11. Ole Miss
12. UCLA
13. Utah
14. Penn State
15. North Carolina
16. NC State
17. Tulane
18. Texas
19. Kansas State
20. Notre Dame
21. Illinois
22. UCF
23. Florida State
24. Kentucky
25. Washington

More college football from SI: Top 25 Rankings | Schedule | Alabama | Georgia | LSU | Ohio State | Michigan | Notre Dame | Tennessee | USC | Clemson | Oklahoma | Texas | All Teams

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