College Football Playoff Predictions, Projections: Which Teams Will Make the 12-Team Field?

Another week in college football down and another week of upsets completely flipping our college football playoff predictions on its head. Last week, I predicted Ohio State would be our No. 1 seed in the 12-team field. This week, they aren't even playing in the Big Ten Championship.

On top of that, Miami looked like a lock to play in the ACC Championship Game this weekend, but they'll be watching from home and hoping the committee gifts them a spot in the field after an upset loss to Syracuse.

Perhaps the best part about this year's college football playoff predictions and the college football landscape in general is the fact that there hasn't been one team that has looked unbeatable. Even unbeaten Oregon, the top seed entering championship weekend, has struggled lately.

So, what will the 12-team field look like come mid-December? We take a look at our latest College Football Playoff predictions and projections following an upset-filled Week 14.

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College Football National Championship Odds

College Football Playoff Predictions - Top-12 Seed Projections

1. Oregon (Big Ten Champion)

You could make an argument that no one had a better Week 14 than Oregon as they went from having to play an uber-talented Ohio State team in the Big Ten Championship to getting a Penn State team that is, at best, inconsistent. Oregon handled rival Washington, 49-21, and has shown us that they're the best team in college football this season. In a year where every top team has gone down to seemingly lesser opponents, Oregon has managed to stay unbeaten. I don't think they'll have any issues remaining that way against Penn State, who struggles to work the ball down the field and can't produce a single explosive play if Tyler Warren doesn't have the ball in his hands.

2. Georgia (SEC Champion)

On the one hand, Georgia needed eight overtimes to beat Georgia Tech this week in a game they trailed 17-0 at the half. On the other hand, they now face a Texas team in the SEC Championship that we saw them handle relatively easily during the regular season. I have questions about just how good Georgia is and how they'll handle Carson Beck's mediocre play in the postseason. However, I have more questions about the Longhorns, Quinn Ewers' injury and the fact that they have played one of the easiest schedules in college football. We know the Georgia defense is elite and gives them a leg up in basically every matchup. I am predicting that they handle Texas in this week's SEC title game and wrap up the No. 2 seed.

3. SMU (ACC Champion)

If it wasn't Oregon that had the best week in Week 13 then it was likely SMU. The Mustangs handled Cal easily, 38-6, while Miami lost to Syracuse and opened the door for Clemson to sneak into the ACC Championship. Yes, despite the fact that Clemson lost to South Carolina this week, they will still make the trip to Charlotte for a chance to play in the CFP. SMU went from having to contain Cam Ward to win the conference to facing Cade Klubnik. That's what we call a gift. This is an SMU team that is playing great football right now. The last one-possession game they played was in October. Clemson is limping into the conference championship and I think SMU will win by two scores to lock up the No. 3 seed as the third-highest-ranked conference champion, despite coming into the game as 2-point dogs.

4. Boise State (Mountain West Champion)

Week after week we hear about Ashton Jeanty and how good the Boise State team is and week after week they deliver great performances. Normally, there would be arguments that they don't belong on the same field as the Power Five teams, but those arguments died when they lost by three to Oregon in a game they had every chance to win. I worry a little that the Broncos may overlook UNLV this week in the Mountain West Championship, but this is a team they've already beaten this year. I think the Broncos get it done and earn a week-one bye in the College Football Playoff this season.

5. Texas

Texas has had a cakewalk of a regular season to this point, although it's no fault of their own. It's not their fault Michigan and Oklahoma decided to barely be competitive teams this season. Still, we have to go on what we know and what we know is that the one elite team they played, Georgia, ran them off the field. It just so happens that they'll get Georgia again this week in the SEC Championship with a shot at revenge. I do think this will be a much closer game than their first game was, highlighted by the fact that Texas is a 1.5-point favorite. However, I have more questions about Texas right now than I do about the Bulldogs. I'm not impressed by a 10-point win over Texas A&M, so this week's performance did little to convince me they'll win the SEC in their first season in the conference.

6. Penn State

There's nothing like sneaking into the conference championship game because you happen to not have played the best team in the conference this season, but that's the reality with Penn State. If they had played Oregon this season, like Ohio State did, they likely would have lost and OSU would have still made the Big Ten Championship. That's a larger conversation to have about how the SEC and Big Ten should have to get rid of out-of-conference play, but that's neither here nor there. Penn State won't apologize for making the Big Ten Championship, as they shouldn't but it is funny to think that, if they lose to Oregon, their appearance in Indianapolis will do more harm than good. Before OSU lost, they had a built-in bye week this week, watching the conference title games from home. Now, they play Oregon, losing their "bye" week and if they lose, they'll again miss out on a first-round bye in the CFP. That game comes down to whether or not Oregon can handle Tyler Warren, but I think Oregon just has too much firepower for the Nittany Lions to hang around.

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7. Notre Dame

As a lifelong Notre Dame hater, I'm quite happy with how this bracket broke for Notre Dame. If they were to have locked up the No. 5 seed, they'd have a first-round home game and a win would lock them into a second-round game against Boise State. Now, as the No. 7 seed, they're taking on a tough IU team in South Bend and the winner will face Georgia in this College Football Playoff Prediction. Like a lot of teams in this field, Notre Dame doesn't have a single quality win on their schedule. For those keeping track at home, that's No. 5, 6 and 7 that happen to be in this position because they haven't played a top-tier team all season. Now that I've gotten all that hate off my chest, I am going to acknowledge that I still think this is a good Notre Dame team. I think they're better than Penn State and potentially better than Texas, but not playing in a conference has them sitting at No. 7 here. Riley Leonard has looked solid while the Notre Dame defense has stepped up lately. The Irish could be poised for a run.

8. Ohio State

I know I said I got all the hate off my chest. Guess what? I lied. I wish there was a way to keep this Ohio State team out of the College Football Playoff, but there isn't, so I have them predicted as the No. 8 seed in the field. For the amount of talent this Buckeyes team has, they are probably the most frustrating team to watch in the country. For argument's sake, if they decided this week that they were going to throw the ball as far as they could to Jeremiah Smith every single offensive play, how many points do you think they would have scored? 28? 24? Instead, they leaned on a running game behind one of the worst OLs in the country as they went against one of the best DLs. This led to an utterly embarrassing loss to Michigan that showcased just how bad Chip Kelly and Ryan Day have been this season. Oh, and for all those Buckeye fans who ran Kyle McCord out of town, I take joy in knowing you have to watch him shred defenses week after week en route to leading the entire country in passing yards. The problem was never him, and it has always been the head coach.

9. Tennessee

I think Tennessee is about as good as Texas when all is said and done. But Texas didn't trip up against a bad team like Tennessee did against Arkansas. Having said that, Texas doesn't have a win on their schedule as good as Tennessee's victory over Alabama, but not playing in the SEC Championship is going to land Tennessee in the back half of the College Football Playoff rankings. The Vols got out to a slow start this past weekend against a feisty Vanderbilt team, but what started as a 14-0 deficit turned into Tennesee outscoring Vandy 36-9 throughout the rest of the game. I have questions about how Nico Iamaleava is going to play on the road at Ohio State in this College Football Playoff prediction, but in this scenario, I also think that this strong Tennessee defensive line would absolutely tear apart a bad Buckeyes OL. If it were to play out like this, I'd pick the Vols to go into Columbus and pull off the victory.

10. Indiana

At this point, Indiana is who they are. They are not going to win a National Championship, but with every other team around the country slipping up in games they're supposed to win, we have to give Curt Cignetti and company some credit. The issue is their loss to Ohio State looks worse every time the Buckeyes take the field. Especially when a Michigan team that might as well play without a QB steps on the field in Columbus and takes it to them. Still, how awesome would it be to see a battle for the Hoosier State in Round One of the College Football Playoff? The way it breaks right now, Kurtis Rourke and the rest of IU would be traveling to South Bend to take on Notre Dame in a game I think they could win if they got some things to bounce their way.

11. Arizona State (Big 12 Champion)

To me, the Big 12 Championship is a toss-up, so this could be both Arizona State or Iowa State, but I think whoever wins will lock up the No. 11 seed in our College Football Playoff prediction and projection. However, there is a chance we see the Big 12 champion earn a bye. If Boise State is to lose to UNLV, then the winner of the Big 12 would shoot up the rankings to No. 4 and be off in the opening round. That would be quite the turnaround for both Arizona State and Iowa State, but the likely scenario is that Boise State takes down UNLV and Arizona State ends up playing Penn State in Happy Valley in Round 1 of the College Football Playoff.

12. South Carolina

What in the world do we do with the No. 12 seed in the College Football Playoff? To me, as it sits right now, the final spot is up for grabs between Alabama, South Carolina, Ole Miss, Clemson and Miami. Personally, I'm removing both the ACC teams from this list because they play in a conference that lacks any real competitive teams and neither have a signature win on the season. So, we're sitting here picking between Ole Miss, South Carolina and Alabama. You can't really go wrong with any of those teams. If you're looking for the most impressive resume, you're likely going to pick Alabama with a win over Georgia and a win over South Carolina in their head-to-head matchup. However, there is no language about teams that deserve to be in based on their best wins. The goal of the committee is to pick the 12 best teams in the country, and I think that South Carolina is one of those teams as it stands today. LaNoris Sellers is a total difference-maker at QB and has this team on a six-game win streak with wins over teams like Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, Missouri and Clemson. I'll admit, it's a tough position to defend when the Gamecocks have lost to both Ole Miss and Alabama head-to-head, but I stand by the fact that the current iteration of SC is a top-12 team and should make it.