For Arkansas fans, week one couldn't have gone any smoother. Playing a clean game on both sides of the ball and making history by going ten touchdowns on ten drives might have shocked the fanbase back to life.
However, not every team around the country felt that way after Saturday. Fellow SEC opponents Florida, Texas A&M, and LSU lost nonconference games against Power Four teams, including Miami dragging the Gators for 60 minutes in the Swamp.
For the most part, that's how most of the teams from last week's playoff prediction felt Saturday night. On the other hand, some had a rough first game back. Clemson was embarrassed by No. 1 Georgia, losing 34-3 and causing the Tigers to fall out of the picture altogether. The other team that struggled managed to stay in the rankings.
Here's what the CFP picture looks like after week one:
2024 Week One 12-team CFP prediction
Rank | Team | Why are they here | Previous rank |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ohio State | Big 10 Champion | 1 |
2 | Georgia | SEC Champion | 2 |
3 | Utah | Big 12 Champion | 3 |
4 | Miami | ACC Champion | Not Ranked |
5 | Texas | At-large | 5 |
6 | Penn St | At-large | 6 |
7 | Ole Miss | At-large | 8 |
8 | Notre Dame | At-large | 9 |
9 | Oklahoma St | At-large | 10 |
10 | Oregon | At-large | 7 |
11 | Missouri | At-large | 12 |
12 | UNLV | MW Champion | 11 |
Oregon was the only team other than Clemson that struggled this week. The Ducks beat Idaho 24-14 despite boasting one of the most talented teams in the country. With an outside chance of winning the Big 10 in its first season in the conference, Oregon will need to perform much better than it did Saturday to accomplish that feat.
With Clemson out of the playoff picture, Miami fills the void left by the Tigers' ungraceful fall from the rankings. If it weren't for the Hurricanes or the CFP rule about conference champions receiving an automatic bid, the ACC might not have a representative. The conference is slowly becoming a Group of Five-level league, despite having programs like FSU, Clemson, NC State, etc., with the potential to be a perennial team in the playoff discussion.