CFP committee chair Hunter Yurachek explains rankings for Miami, Notre Dame

Once again, there was plenty of discussion about the placement of Miami and Notre Dame in the latest College Football Playoff rankings. The Hurricanes came in at No. 12 and the Fighting Irish at No. 9 when the rankings were released Tuesday evening.

Many have wondered how Notre Dame can be ranked ahead of Miami when both teams have two losses and the Hurricanes won a head-to-head matchup in Week 1. However, CFP committee chair Hunter Yurachek pointed to other factors that are keeping the Fighting Irish in the lead.

“They were compared this week, but they were compared in the same pod with Alabama and a one-loss BYU,” he said on ESPN. “The committee still feels that Notre Dame is a complete team, has been consistent throughout the season and deserves to be ranked where they are at No. 9 ahead of Alabama, a really good two-loss team with some great wins. Then a one-loss BYU team and then Miami falls in accordingly.”

It’s worth noting that both of Notre Dame’s losses have come against teams currently ranked inside the top 15 of the CFP and were by less than a touchdown. Meanwhile, Miami lost against No. 21 SMU and Louisville, which is currently unranked.

The quality of losses combined with strength of schedule is likely hurting the Hurricanes here. Neither team has an elite SOS, but Notre Dame comes in at No. 34 compared to No. 48 for Miami according to ESPN.

Yurachek noted that he has liked what he’s seen out of Miami recently, and the committee is clearly still high on them to rank them inside the top 12. However, with no chance of playing for a conference title, the Hurricanes have a high probability of being on the outside looking in when the final ranking is announced.

“The committee has seen some really good, consistent play from Miami over the past three weeks,” Yurachek said. “Carson Beck over the last three games has completed over 80% of his passes, 800 yards in total passing, eight touchdowns and no interceptions. He looks like the Carson Beck in that five-game winning streak they had to start the season.

“They lost two out of three, but now it appears they’re back on track. They started in this poll at 18 and now they’re up to 12. They’re the biggest mover over the past four weeks.”