We finally received our first College Football Playoff rankings of 2025 last week, and since then, we’ve had another week of scintillating games to add to the minds of the CFP committee that works collectively to decide where teams fall in the rankings that decide who gets to be a part of the 12-team field.
Now, it’s time to absorb what the CFP rankings will be for Week 2, and each subsequent week beyond that until we get past conference championship weekend in early December. Will Ohio State still be No. 1? Did Texas A&M impress the CFP committee enough to swap places with Indiana at No. 2? What about other Big Ten teams like Oregon, Michigan, and USC? Where did they land?
Advertisement
We are dying to find out.
We’ll get a real, live look at those rankings once they are announced on ESPN if you can find the network these days (we’re talking to you YouTube TV subscribers), but we like to predict what those rankings will look like ahead of the reveal each week. And, since the second release is occurring on Tuesday — well, we’re game to give it another shot, and will hopefully do better this time now that we have a baseline for what the committee put out there in Week 1.
Here’s how we see the second College Football Playoff Rankings for 2025 playing out on Tuesday night. We’ll go from No. 12 down to No. 1 as usual.
No. 12 – BYU Cougars (8-1)
BYU football team celebrates after winning 41-27 over Iowa State at Jack Trice Stadium on Oct. 25, 2025, in Ames, Iowa.
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 7
Advertisement
Why it makes sense
BYU lost this past weekend, but it was to a top-ten Texas Tech team. And while the Cougars looked completely overwhelmed by the Red Raiders, there’s a head-to-head win over last week’s No. 13 team, Utah, that will probably be a backstop for them and allow BYU to stick inside the top 12. There aren’t a lot of moments to improve the resume, but if the Cougars can get into the Big 12 championship game and win, they have a good chance of getting into the field.
Sep 13, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Oklahoma Sooners running back Xavier Robinson (24) makes a touchdown reception against the Temple Owls in the second half at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 12
Why it makes sense
Oklahoma had an open date last week, so there’s not a whole lot that has changed on the field for the Sooners since last week’s rankings, but because BYU’s loss wasn’t a close one, in combination with some good wins for Oklahoma, it makes sense for them to move up a spot ahead of the Cougars. We might see the committee keep BYU higher than this, but that seems doubtful with what both teams have done outside of the extra loss for the Sooners.
Advertisement
Notre Dame linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa (27) celebrates after intercepting a pass in the second half of a NCAA football game against NC State at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in South Bend.
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 10
Why it makes sense
The Fighting Irish were just inside the top ten last week, and I see them staying the same spot, mainly because of what the next team here did to move ahead of Notre Dame, which looked great, but against an opponent not as good. The win over USC is the best and only ranked opponent the Irish have beaten, and there’s not much more out there, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens if teams behind the Fighting Irish continue to win and get into conference championship game scenarios.
Sep 20, 2025; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian leads his team on to the field before a game against the Sam Houston State Bearkats at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 11
Advertisement
Why it makes sense
As mentioned above, I think there’s a good chance Texas leapfrogs Notre Dame after beating a quality Vanderbilt team that is going to be ranked inside the top 20. The loss to No. 1 Ohio State won’t look bad, and the win over Oklahoma gives the Longhorns more of a resume than the Irish. If Notre Dame stays ahead of Texas, it has more to do with what the CFP committee sees with its own eyes vs. the body of work. Regardless, the game vs. Georgia is going to change things one way or the other this week.
Oct 25, 2025; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore (5) throws a pass during the first half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 9
Why it makes sense
The committee doesn’t like the Ducks as much as the other polls do, but after winning in Iowa City in tough conditions, those opinions might start to change. Keep winning down the stretch, and those minds will definitely shift. This is about as far as Oregon can move up, however, because Texas Tech also looked impressive, and there’s only so far a team can move up this high in the rankings without some losses occurring ahead of them or without a big-time win over a top-five or top-ten team.
Advertisement
No. 7 – Texas Tech Red Raiders (9-1)
Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-Imagn Images
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 8
Why it makes sense
Texas Tech looked like the far better team on Saturday than a top-ten BYU squad. This team is playing well and could be a handful for anyone down the stretch, including in the College Football Playoff. It’s tempting to move the Red Raiders above Ole Miss because of who the Rebels played last week, but I don’t see the committee doing that at this point.
No. 6 – Ole Miss Rebels (9-1)
Ole Miss running back Logan Diggs (22) celebrates with offensive lineman Brycen Sanders (62) during a college football game between Ole Miss and LSU at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss., on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. Ole Miss defeated LSU 24-19.
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 6
Why it makes sense
The committee is still going to love that Ole Miss is in the SEC and has the win over Oklahoma. The Rebels can’t be slotted above Georgia because of the head-to-head result, so this is as high as they can go until and if the Bulldogs stumble. They should handle games against Florida and Mississippi State to finish the regular season, but if not, I guess that tells us all we need to know.
Advertisement
Oct 4, 2025; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs tight end Elyiss Williams (10) runs after a catch against the Kentucky Wildcats at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 5
Why it makes sense
The Bulldogs finally looked like a lot of us thought they would last week, but there’s still the loss to Alabama as a head-to-head that keeps them from moving up. A major matchup with Texas is on the horizon, and we’re going to learn a lot about both of those teams’ CFP standing after this weekend.
Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer during the college football game against Tennessee at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Oct. 18, 2025.
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 4
Why it makes sense
The season-opening loss to Florida State seems like an eternity ago, as we’ve seen this team improve as the season has gone on. Things didn’t look very polished last week against LSU, but the Tide has a lot of wins over ranked opponents, so they’ll most likely remain here as the highest-ranked one-loss team.
Advertisement
Oct 11, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies running back Le’Veon Moss (8) runs the ball in for a touchdown during the second quarter against the Florida Gators at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 3
Why it makes sense
I don’t think there’s going to be much debate on the No. 1 team, but No. 2 and No. 3 will be hotly debated. The committee already said it spent considerable time discussing Indiana and Texas A&M last week, and with the Hoosiers’ escaping on the road against an underwhelming Penn State team, that figures to only intensify. Still, I don’t think there will be a change at this point. Yes, the Aggies dominated an SEC opponent on the road, but Missouri won’t be ranked in this edition of the CFP rankings. The Hoosiers still found a way to win on the road in a hostile environment, and I think that keeps them ahead of Texas A&M … for now. You can’t help but look at the prospects of Nov. 28 vs. Texas in a few weeks as a watershed moment for a lot of things.
Advertisement
Oct 25, 2025; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers wide receiver E.J. Williams Jr. (7) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second half against the UCLA Bruins at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 2
Why it makes sense
See above. Indiana still has some good wins on the road, including the one over an Oregon team that’s going to be ranked inside the top ten still. It has looked absolutely dominant outside of two games, and those were both away from home in historically tough places to play. The offense and defense are both among the best in the country, and I think that’s all enough to keep Indiana at No. 2.
Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) celebrates in the first half of the college football game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025 in Columbus, Ohio.
Last Week’s Ranking | No. 1
Why it makes sense
Again, there will be little debate here. What Ohio State lacks in ranked wins, it makes up for in efficiency metrics, star power, strength of record, and game control. Oh, and the Buckeyes pass the eye test more than any team on this list. The next two weeks shouldn’t be much of a problem, then it’s time to solve the Rubik’s cube that is Michigan on Nov. 29.
Advertisement
Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X.
This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: College Football Playoff rankings: Predicting the second release
