Andrea Adelson, ESPN Senior Writer November 21, 2023, 7:19 p.m. ET
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- ACC Reporter.
- Joined ESPN.com in 2010.
- Graduated from the University of Florida.
Washington pushed Florida State to No. 4 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night after beating its third straight opponent last weekend.
While the top three remained unchanged – Georgia is still No. 1, followed by Ohio State at No. 2 and Michigan at No. 3 – Washington moved into the top four for the first time this season and Florida State fell to No. 3 . 5 after losing quarterback Jordan Travis for the season.
The Huskies beat then-No. 12 Oregon State 22-20 last Saturday, following wins over then-No. 18 Utah and then No. 20 USC. Although Utah and USC are no longer ranked, Washington is now No. 1 in ESPN’s record strength. Florida State is No. 4 in the same metric.
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The Seminoles played FCS North Alabama last weekend and overcame an early 13-0 deficit to win 58-13. But the score and outcome mattered little after Travis was sidelined with a lower leg injury – and as the committee expects that injury to cause upset in the coming weeks.
Florida State plays at rival Florida on Saturday with Tate Rodemaker as its starting quarterback and then has the ACC championship game against No. 10 Louisville on Dec. 2 in Charlotte.
On Monday, coach Mike Norvell told ESPN he wasn’t worried about what the committee would do with his rankings this week.
| Rank, team | Record |
|---|---|
| 1. Georgia | 11-0 |
| 2. Ohio State | 11-0 |
| 3.Michigan | 11-0 |
| 4.Washington | 11-0 |
| 5. Florida State | 11-0 |
| 6.Oregon | 10-1 |
| 7.Texas | 10-1 |
| 8.Alabama | 10-1 |
| 9. Missouri | 9-2 |
| 10. Louisville | 10-1 |
| 11. Penn State | 9-2 |
| 12. Ole Miss | 9-2 |
| 13.Oklahoma | 9-2 |
| 14. LSU | 8-3 |
| 15.Arizona | 8-3 |
| 16. Oregon State | 8-3 |
| 17.Iowa | 9-2 |
| 18. Notre Dame | 8-3 |
| 19. Kansas State | 8-3 |
| 20. Oklahoma State | 8-3 |
| 21. Tennessee | 7-4 |
| 22. NC State | 8-3 |
| 23. Tulane | 10-1 |
| 24. Clemson | 7-4 |
| 25. Freedom | 11-0 |
“Three, four weeks ago I didn’t care what our rankings looked like, and I certainly didn’t care what our rankings were going to look like this week,” Norvell said. “We have done everything necessary to show who we are and we get the opportunity to show how we respond to adversity and an unfortunate situation, but this is a bloody good football team. I can promise you our guys will. “We’re working as hard as we can to get better.
“We can go on the road, a big rivalry game, a big week for us, and the next week we get a chance to play in a conference championship. I know that if we show everything that we are, the rankings will be in the “If we achieve the goal that really matters, we will put ourselves in a position to achieve all the things that we ultimately desire.”
There’s sure to be more change next week as a showdown between rivals Ohio State and Michigan looms on Saturday. One of these teams will end up with a loss and no chance to play for a Big Ten Championship. The question for Florida State is whether an undefeated season – with Travis on the sideline – will still be enough to get into the four-team playoffs.
The three teams with a single loss behind Florida State in the top 10 remain unchanged: Oregon at No. 6, Texas at No. 7 and Alabama at No. 8. All three also have big games coming up. The Ducks have Oregon State, which fell to No. 16, while Texas hosts Texas Tech on Friday with a chance to clinch a spot in the Big 12 title game. Alabama has rival Auburn and then the SEC championship game against Georgia.
Tulane remains the top-ranked team in Group 5 at No. 23, although Liberty was added to the rankings this week at No. 25. Also joining them this week are two schools familiar to Florida State: No. 22 NC State and No. 22 No. 24 Clemson.