D Poll: Week 15 (2024)
Rivalry week delivered. It's time to rank the top 25 in college football.
The end of the college football regular season is always bittersweet. On one hand, I'm sad that there won't be another jam-packed football Saturday until next August. On the other, there are still some great conference championship games next weekend and also the College Football Playoff. Add on the multitude of exciting bowl games that we're sure to see throughout December and early January, and it's like there's a whole other season ahead of us.
With the conclusion of the regular season comes the conference championship games, which I'll preview in my inaugural episode of Seth's College Football Show on Thursday. However, before that can be done, the College Football Playoff committee, in all its glory, needs to tell us where everything stands. As I've mentioned in previous iterations of this poll, I'm not the biggest fan of the committee and how it's handled business over its decade of existence. Yes, I'm jaded by the omission of TCU in 2014 (even though I understand the argument). Last year's debacle with Florida State was a turn-off for me and brought me to the brink of my fandom for college football. In fact, the committee's misdeeds last season are part of the reason why I desire to publish my own poll every week. I think it's important to speak some logic into a college football world that is so often filled with nonsense.
What the committee does in tonight's ranking is extremely important. Theoretically, it'll lay the foundation for how it will make its decisions come Sunday. Where will it slot SMU? How far does Miami fall? How much cushion does Ohio State get? Where do Alabama, South Carolina, and Ole Miss fit into everything? I have no idea what the committee will do. The group is so inconsistent with its reasoning that there is no point in trying to decipher its decisions. What I can show you is what I'd do. Here's the D Poll for Week 15.
1. Oregon (12-0, 9-0 Big Ten)
Week 14 game: 49-21 win vs. Washington
2. Texas (11-1, 7-1 SEC)
Week 14 game: 17-17 win at Texas A&M
3. Notre Dame (11-1)
Week 14 game: 49-35 win at USC
4. Penn State (11-1, 8-1 Big Ten)
Week 14 game: 44-7 win vs. Maryland
5. Georgia (10-2, 6-2 SEC)
Week 14 game: 44-42 win vs. Georgia Tech
6. SMU (11-1, 8-0 ACC)
Week 14 game: 38-6 win vs. California
7. Tennessee (10-2, 6-2 SEC)
Week 14 game: 36-23 win vs. Vanderbilt
8. Ohio State (10-2, 7-2 Big Ten)
Week 14 game: 13-10 loss vs. Michigan
9. Indiana (11-1, 8-1 Big Ten)
Week 14 game: 66-0 win vs. Purdue
10. Boise State (11-1, 7-0 Mountain West)
Week 14 game: 34-18 win vs. Oregon State
11. Arizona State (10-2, 7-2 Big 12)
Week 14 game: 49-7 win at Arizona
12. South Carolina (9-3, 5-3 SEC)
Week 14 game: 17-14 win at Clemson
13. Miami (10-2, 6-2 ACC)
Week 14 game: 42-38 loss at Syracuse
14. Iowa State (10-2, 7-2 Big 12)
Week 14 game: 29-21 win vs. Kansas State
15. Alabama (9-3, 5-3 SEC)
Week 14 game: 28-14 win vs. Auburn
16. Ole Miss (9-3, 5-3 SEC)
Week 14 game: 26-14 win vs. Mississippi State
17. BYU (10-2, 7-2 Big 12)
Week 14 game: 30-18 win vs. Houston
18. Illinois (9-3, 6-3 Big Ten)
Week 14 game: 38-28 win at Northwestern
19. UNLV (10-2, 6-1 Mountain West)
Week 14 game: 38-14 win vs. Nevada
20. Colorado (9-3, 7-2 Big 12)
Week 14 game: 52-0 win vs. Oklahoma State
21. Clemson (9-3, 7-1 ACC)
Week 14 game: 17-14 loss vs. South Carolina
22. Syracuse (9-3, 5-3 ACC)
Week 14 game: 42-38 win vs. Miami
23. Army (10-1, 8-0 American)
Week 14 game: BYE
24. Memphis (10-2, 6-2 American)
Week 14 game: 34-24 win at Tulane
25. Baylor (8-4, 6-3 Big 12)
Week 14 game: 45-17 win vs. Kansas
Teams in consideration: Texas A&M, Duke, Louisville, TCU, Kansas State, Tulane
Here's what the playoff seedings would look like if it were based on this week's D Poll (conference champions are in bold):
1. Oregon (Big Ten)
2. Texas (SEC)
3. SMU (ACC)
4. Boise State (Mountain West)
5. Notre Dame (Independent)
6. Penn State (Big Ten)
7. Georgia (SEC)
8. Tennessee (SEC)
9. Ohio State (Big Ten)
10. Indiana (Big Ten)
11. Arizona State (Big 12)
12. South Carolina (SEC)
Remember, the five highest-ranked conference champions automatically get into the playoff, with the top four getting byes.1 It's kind of surreal that in the D Poll, and likely in this week's CFP ranking, Boise State will be slotted into the four seed. It's this kind of scenario that proves to me that auto bids (or at least auto byes) for conference champions are ludicrous. Who knows, maybe Boise State is better than we all think, but on paper, it looks ridiculous. I doubt that the SEC and Big Ten, who control this sport and subsequently the playoff, will like that.
One final slate of games remains for the top teams to prove themselves worthy of an invitation to the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff. While I think the playoff itself is going to be a ton of fun, I'm stressed about the potential mess that lies ahead as we all try to parse who's going to be able to participate. There's still a path for one, if not two, of the three-loss SEC teams (South Carolina, Ole Miss, and Alabama) to get into this thing. There's also still a chance that UNLV usurps Boise State's slot as the Group of 6 representative with a win in the Mountain West Championship game. Those are just two of countless crazy scenarios that could descend upon us come Friday and Saturday.
Try not to get too disgruntled about the rankings tonight. It's a fruitless exercise that will only bring longing for college football's glory days. This sport still has a lot to offer. Don't let a group of individuals in a hotel conference room in Grapevine, Texas deter you from loving it the way it deserves.
Notre Dame, as an independent, is ineligible for a first-round bye.