College Football Playoff drama building: Stubborn Rose Bowl, Tennessee fans on fire

ATHENS — Life at the top continued for Georgia football with the release of the penultimate CFP rankings.

Coach Kirby Smart had already said his focus would be squarely on the 4 p.m. game with LSU on Saturday, even while some speculated Michigan’s win over Ohio State could vault the Wolverines over the Bulldogs in the CFP rankings.

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It might still happen if the Bulldogs were to struggle with the Bayou Bengals in the SEC Championship Game and Michigan were to dominate Purdue.

Style points do matter to CFP Committees, and recency bias is very real.

So are attractive television matchups, and that’s why some aren’t convinced that if the top four teams win out —Georgia, Michigan, TCU and USC — they would hold their current place.

For now, it’s:

1. Georgia

2. Michigan

3. TCU

4. USC

5. Ohio State

6. Alabama

7. Tennessee

But back to that top four, which will determine the pairings for the CFP Peach Bowl Semifinal in Atlanta, and the CFP Fiesta Bowl Semifinal in Glendale, Ariz. (both to be played on Dec. 31 leading up to the Jan. 9 CFP Championship Game).