Sporting News predicts 12-team College Football Playoff field after Week 9

The Sporting News predicted the 12-team College Football Playoff field after Week 9 of the season and there are some intriguing matchups.

The projections feature who will win their respective conferences, first round matchups and the top four teams who get byes through the first round. Are you ready for some newcomers as well?

So without further ado, let’s dive into the latest College Football Playoff projections from The Sporting News. We’ll start with the first-round matchups.

College Football Playoff First Round Game #1

No. 12 Navy (American Champion) at No. 5 Georgia

The Sporting News has Navy making the College Football Playoff as the AAC champ! They’d be the first service academy to make the bracket. Right now, they’re 7-0 and on top of the conference.

However, they’d have to go to Georgia in the first round. The Bulldogs get in as an at-large team right now in a loaded SEC. They are one of five teams in this projection.

College Football Playoff First Round Game #2

No. 11 Georgia Tech at No. 6 Oregon

The Yellow Jackets get in as an at-large as well but will hit the road to play Oregon. Still, Brent Key’s job cannot be understated as they’ve raced out to an 8-0 record.

Oregon won the Big Ten last year and earned the No. 1 seed, but lost to Ohio State in the quarterfinals. Perhaps this run in the College Football Playoff will be a bit different.

College Football Playoff First Round Game #3

No. 10 Vanderbilt at No. 7 Miami (ACC Champion)

Vanderbilt is off to the College Football Playoff for the first time based on these projections! Clark Lea has the Commodores rolling at 7-1 right now, so they’re firmly in the race.

Miami is the projected ACC champion and gets a first round game to boot. They’re likely going to be 12-1 or 11-2 at worst in this scenario.

College Football Playoff First Round Game #4

No. 9 BYU (Big 12 Champion) at No. 8 Ole Miss

At 8-0, BYU is rolling right now and projected to win the Big 12 and make the College Football PLayoff. Interestingly, Sporting News has them hitting the road in the first round. 

That probably means they slip up somewhere, perhaps against Texas Tech in the regular season before beating them or someone else in the conference title game in the end. Ole Miss is 7-1, fresh off a win over Oklahoma and projected to get a home game. They’re still in the mix for the SEC crown.

No. 1 Ohio State (Big Ten Champion) vs. TBD

Ohio State is projected to win the Big Ten at this rate. The defending national champions are basically a shoe-in to make the College Football Playoff once again.

They were on a bye week last weekend but are back in action against Penn State. What would be a marquee matchup could end up being a disaster for the Nittany Lions this season.

No. 2 Alabama (SEC Champion) vs. TBD

Alabama has won seven games in a row and based on these College Football Playoff projections, they won’t lose the rest of the way. To get the No. 2 seed, they’re likely 12-1 and SEC champions.

QB Ty Simpson is one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy, so that certainly helps! Kalen DeBoer has righted the ship after that Week 1 loss to Florida State.

No. 3 Indiana vs. TBD

The Hoosiers are rolling but won’t win the Big Ten according to these College Football Playoff projections. Still, Indiana will make it back to back CFP appearances.

Curt Cignetti has done everything right since taking over the job last year. The only losses on the resume are to Ohio State and Notre Dame last year. This year? Some might pick them to make a deep run at the minimum.

No. 4 Texas A&M vs. TBD

Now to the Aggies, who are on the doorstep of their first College Football Playoff appearance. Mike Elko has this team at 8-0 and right now, the projected runner-ups in the SEC.

Marcel Reed is playing well at QB and everything seems to be clicking. But, Texas A&M still has to play ranked Missouri and Texas teams in two of their last four games.