The Detroit News
 | The Detroit News
Michigan got a boost in the second edition of the College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night.
The Wolverines (7-2 overall, 5-1 Big Ten), who were on a bye last week, moved to No. 18 from No. 21 in the new rankings. They have three games remaining – at Northwestern (at Wrigley Field), at Maryland and home against Ohio State – and will have to win all of them to have a shot at making the playoff.
The top five remained unchanged: No. 1 Ohio State, followed by Indiana, Texas A&M, Alabama and Georgia (full rankings below).
Texas Tech jumped two spots to No. 6, moving one notch ahead of Ole Miss, which dropped to No. 7 despite a romp over The Citadel in a nonconference game.
The biggest shifts came lower in the rankings, where Miami moved up three spots to No. 15 and vaulted over Georgia Tech to claim the ACC’s spot in the 12-team bracket. And South Florida earned the No. 24 ranking, which brings with it the 12th and final spot in this week’s projected bracket.
No. 11 Oklahoma and No. 12 BYU would be the first two teams out in this week’s bracket due to the automatic spots handed to the ACC (Miami) and the highest-ranked league leader out of the Group of 5 (South Florida).
A playoff appearance this year would be Michigan’s fourth in the last five seasons:
2021: Lost to Georgia, 34-11
2022: Lost to TCU, 51-45
2023: Beat Alabama, 27-20, and Washington, 34-13 (national championship)
CFP rankings
1. Ohio State, 9-0
2. Indiana, 10-0
3. Texas A&M, 9-0
4. Alabama, 8-1
5. Georgia, 8-1
6. Texas Tech, 9-1
7. Ole Miss, 9-1
8. Oregon, 8-1
9. Notre Dame, 7-2
10. Texas, 7-2
11. Oklahoma, 7-2
12. BYU, 8-1
13. Utah, 7-2
14. Vanderbilt, 8-2
15. Miami, 7-2
16. Georgia Tech, 8-1
17. USC, 7-2
18. Michigan, 7-2
19. Virginia, 8-2
20. Louisville, 7-2
21. Iowa, 6-3
22. Pittsburgh, 7-2
23. Tennessee, 6-3
24. USF, 7-2
25. Cincinnati, 7-2
Projected bracket
If the CFP started today, this is what the first round and quarterfinal matchups would be. Note that playoff seedings (not rankings) are listed.
FIRST ROUND
No. 8 Oregon vs. No. 9 Notre Dame
No. 7 Ole Miss vs. No. 10 Texas
No. 6 Texas Tech vs. No. 11 Miami
No. 5 Georgia vs. No. 12 USF
QUARTERFINALS
No. 1 Ohio State vs. Oregon-Notre Dame winner
No. 2 Indiana vs. Ole Miss-Texas winner
No. 3 Texas A&M vs. Texas Tech-Miami winner
No. 4 Alabama vs. Georgia-USF winner
CFP schedule
FIRST ROUND
(Campus sites)
Friday, Dec. 19
One game – 8 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 20
Three games – Noon, 3:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS
Wednesday, Dec. 31
Cotton Bowl, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 1
Orange Bowl, noon
Rose Bowl, 4 p.m.
Sugar Bowl, 8 p.m.
SEMIFINALS
Thursday, Jan. 8
Fiesta Bowl, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 9
Peach Bowl, 7:30 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Monday, Jan. 19
At Miami Gardens, Fla., 7:30 p.m.
Associated Press contributed.
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