Oregon dinged massively in CFP rankings for strength of record, but can rectify this

It was not what Oregon fans wanted, but now they know where they will have to start from to appease the College Football Playoff Selection Committee. Oregon is comfortably in the 12-team playoff field, but the Ducks are seeded ninth... They are behind Texas Tech, BYU, Ole Miss and Georgia outside of the top four. There is a perfectly good explanation for this, but one that the Ducks cannot deny here.

Through their first eight games of the season, Oregon has not beaten anyone close to being ranked. Their best win so far is over a 5-3 Northwestern Wildcats team. No, it is not the Ducks' fault that the Penn State Nittany Lions have not won a game since they played in State College. While everybody who has played Indiana has lost, it came in Autzen, and the Ducks lose by 10 points. It is what it is...

Without further ado, let's take a look at the College Football Playoff rankings and it 12-team bracket.

Oregon Ducks are comfortably in College Football Playoff, but need help

Here are the top 25 teams in the first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2025 college season.

1. Ohio State Buckeyes (8-0)
2. Indiana Hoosiers (9-0)
3. Texas A&M Aggies (8-0)
4. Alabama Crimson Tide (7-1)
5. Georgia Bulldogs (7-1)
6. Ole Miss Rebels (8-1)
7. BYU Cougars (8-0)
8. Texas Tech Red Raiders (8-1)
9. Oregon Ducks (7-1)
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-2)
11. Texas Longhorns (7-2)
12. Oklahoma Sooners (7-2)
13. Utah Utes (7-2)
14. Virginia Cavaliers (8-1)
15. Louisville Cardinals (7-1)
16. Vanderbilt Commodores (7-2)
17. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (8-1)
18. Miami Hurricanes (6-2)
19. USC Trojans (6-2)
20. Iowa Hawkeyes (6-2)
21. Michigan Wolverines (6-2)
22. Missouri Tigers (6-2)
23. Washington Huskies (6-2)
24. Pittsburgh Panthers (7-2)
25. Tennessee Volunteers (6-3)

Based on the College Football Playoff requirements, these would be the 12 teams to make it in.

1. Ohio State Buckeyes (8-0): Projected Big Ten champion
2. Indiana Hoosiers (9-0): Projected Big Ten runner-up
3. Texas A&M Aggies (8-0): Projected SEC champion
4. Alabama Crimson Tide (7-1): Projected SEC runner-up
5. Georgia Bulldogs (7-1): Projected SEC at-large
6. Ole Miss Rebels (8-1): Projected SEC at-large
7. BYU Cougars (8-0): Projected Big 12 champion
8. Texas Tech Red Raiders (8-1): Projected Big 12 runner-up
9. Oregon Ducks (7-1): Projected Big Ten at-large
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-2): Projected national independent at-large
11. Virginia Cavaliers (8-1): Projected ACC champion
12. Memphis Tigers (8-1): Projected AAC/Group of Five champion

If you wanted a visual representation of what that bracket looks like, ESPN's Adam Schefter had this.

To help drive home why Oregon was ranked No. 9, let's check out what Mack Rhoades had to say...

Mack Rhoades explains why Oregon was not ranked as high as expected

Baylor's athletic director/College Football Playoff Selection Committee chair offered the following.

"Oregon, when you look at them in the top 10, are lowest ranked in terms of record strength. The committee had a lot of conversation - rigorous debate - conversation about Oregon as a team. We're blessed to have three coaches in the room and looking at the tape. When you looked at Oregon, great players at the skill position, felt that they're really, really good up front both sides of the ball. Their one loss is to our No. 2 ranked team, Indiana. When we looked and evaluated Oregon, we really looked in terms of just quality of team and how they looked on film."

Oregon has looked dominant vs. lesser opponents this year, but it has yet to earn a quality win so far.

The good news for Oregon fans is the Ducks will have plenty of opportunities to put pelts on the wall.

Looking at Oregon's remaining schedule, the No. 9 Ducks will play No. 20 Iowa on the road at Kinnick this week. After getting an unranked, but bowl-eligible Minnesota team in Autzen, the Ducks will then host No. 19 USC before having to face a massive rival on the road in No. 23 Washington in Seattle. As long as the Ducks beat two of those three ranked teams, they will almost certainly make the playoff.

In the end, everybody and their brother knew that Oregon's toughest games were going to happen at the end of the season. Nobody could have foresaw Penn State being a tire fire, but Iowa, USC and Washington have all exceeded expectations so far. Truth be told, the Selection Committee wants to like Oregon, but it struggled to justify putting the Ducks any higher based on their strength of record.

Oregon fans may not like being ranked No. 9 to start, but it sure beats being outside of the top 12...