November is here. It's officially time to think about the College Football Playoff.
The College Football Playoff committee released its first of six rankings Tuesday with the final ranking Dec. 5 deciding which teams will play for a chance at a national title.
In this first ranking, with a loss to Oregon on its record, Ohio State still has a ways to go.
The Buckeyes were ranked as the No. 5 team in the country behind Georgia, Alabama, Michigan State and Oregon.
Ohio State and Alabama are now tied for the lead with 43 appearances in the College Football Playoff appearances. Clemson failed to make the top-25 for the first time since the Playoff's inception in 2014.
Ohio State is set to face two ranked teams in its final four games: No. 3 Michigan State Nov. 20 and No. 7 Michigan Nov. 27.
Here's a look at the first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2021 season.
College Football Playoff rankings: Week 1
1. Georgia
2. Alabama
3. Michigan State
4. Oregon
5. Ohio State
6. Cincinnati
7. Michigan
8. Oklahoma
9. Wake Forest
10. Notre Dame
11. Oklahoma State
12. Baylor
13. Auburn
14. Texas A&M
15. BYU
16. Ole Miss
17. Mississippi State
18. Kentucky
19. NC State
20. Minnesota
21. Wisconsin
22. Iowa
23. Fresno State
24. San Diego State
25 Pittsburgh
Here's what committee chair Gary Barta had to say about the rankings
College Football Playoff committee chair and Iowa Athletic Director Gary Barta made it perfectly clear: head-to-head does matter.
In ESPN's announcement show, he said that's the reason why Oregon is ranked above Ohio State saying the Ducks' win in Columbus was "very important to the committee."
In terms of the top-four, Barta said Georgia was the clear No. 1 and there was consensus for Alabama at No. 2 before spending hours working through No. 3 through No. 9.
On Michigan State, Barta cited its undefeated record and its win against No. 7 Michigan.
Barta said the committee has "great respect for Cincinnati.," crediting its road win against Notre Dame, which came in at No. 10. However, he was skeptical about the rest of the Bearcats' scjhedule.
"When you look at their schedule after that, who else did they beat?" Barta asked.
However, Barta said he's not ready to say there's a ceiling for Cincinnati, saying the committee looked at what has happened so far instead of projecting ahead.
Here's what it means for Ohio State
In the first Playoff rankings, the committee made it clear that head-to-head meetings matter.
With Oregon beating Ohio State by a touchdown on the road Sept. 11, the Ducks finished at No. 4 compared to No. 5 Ohio State.
However, Ohio State's position remains good. With Michigan State at No. 3 and Michigan at No. 7 — the two ranked games that the Buckeyes have to finish their regular season — along with the plethora of Big Ten West contenders at the bottom of the Top 25 it could face in the Big Ten Championship, Ohio State has the opportunity to develop a resume to be in the top-four before the season is complete.
Also with Oklahoma at No. 8, Michigan at No. 7 and Cincinnati at No. 6, Ohio State doesn't seem to have to do anything but win out. Clearly undefeated Oklahoma hasn't passed the eye test along with Cincinnati, who, to the committee, didn't do much outside of beating No. 10 Notre Dame.
