Michigan football improves to No. 3 in new College Football Playoff rankings

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Michigan jumped up two spots to No. 3 in the second edition of this season’s College Football Playoff rankings.

The Wolverines improved to 9-0 this weekend after scoring 38 unanswered points in the second half to blow out Rutgers, 52-17. Only four undefeated teams remain: Michigan, Georgia, Ohio State, and TCU.

In the season’s first CFP poll, Michigan was surprisingly ranked No. 5 behind Clemson, but the Tigers ran into some trouble Saturday night, getting dominated by a Notre Dame team that has already lost to the likes of Marshall and Stanford.

Tennessee, the No. 1 team in the initial rankings, dropped out of the top four following a loss at Georgia that wasn’t nearly as close as the 27-13 final score suggests. The Volunteers are still in strong position to make the playoff as an 11-1 team, but for now, they’re technically on the outside looking in.

There was some debate about which Big Ten powerhouse should earn the No. 2 spot behind Georgia, but considering the committee’s preference for Ohio State in the first rankings, as well as the Buckeyes’ larger margins of victory against common opponents, it’s no surprise to see Michigan sitting at No. 3.

Here’s the full top 25:

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. N.C. State
17. Tulane
18. Texas
19. Kansas State
20. Notre Dame
21. Illinois
22. UCF
23. Florida State
24. Kentucky
25. Washington