2024 college football rankings: Joel Klatt’s top 10 teams after Week 12

What a Saturday it was in college football.

Travis Hunter further solidified himself as the Heisman favorite in Colorado’s win over Utah. The Buffs are also proving to be more legitimate each week as they’re in the driver’s seat for a spot in the Big 12 Championship Game.

Of course, the biggest result from Saturday’s slate was Georgia’s 31-17 win over Tennessee. The Bulldogs did exactly what they needed to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive as they remained in the hunt to play in the SEC Championship Game. 

Was Georgia’s win enough to put it back up among the elite teams in college football? Here’s my latest top 10. 

1. Oregon (Last week: 1)
Record: 11-0
Week 12 result: Defeated Wisconsin, 16-13

I kept Oregon at No. 1 even though the Ducks looked sluggish against Wisconsin. I initially didn’t feel great about putting Oregon at No. 1 due to how it played in Madison.

However, I remembered that Oregon played a conference game for eight straight weeks without a bye. After an underwhelming stretch of football in non-conference play to open up the season, Oregon was as dominant as anyone in college football for the next seven games. The Ducks didn’t have that game again where we scratched our heads and wondered, “Wait, what was that?” until Saturday. 

But every other team in the country had that, “Wait, what was that?” performance in conference play at some point this season before Oregon’s tight win at Wisconsin. The fact that Oregon didn’t have a game like that until Saturday is pretty remarkable. So, I don’t think it’s cause for concern. In fact, it shows that Oregon can have that type of game and still pull out a win, unlike some other teams who had the “Wait, what was that?” performance earlier this season. Prior to Saturday, Oregon’s closest win in conference play was over Ohio State, while its other six wins were by at least three scores. 

College teams aren’t going to be their best every week, and we were spoiled by Oregon. When you consider all the circumstances surrounding Oregon’s win, I might be more impressed with this group now than I was prior to Saturday. 

2. Ohio State (Last week: 2)
Record: 9-1
Week 12 result: Defeated Northwestern, 31-7

The Buckeyes still have the best roster in college football and it showed in their win over Northwestern at Wrigley Field on Saturday. Ohio State quickly turned the game on Northwestern’s head, scoring 31 straight points after going down 7-0 early on. 

The last couple of weeks were business as usual for Ohio State. Ryan Day has a couple of important home games, though, to close out the season, hosting Indiana on Saturday before The Game a week later. 

3. Texas (Last week: 3)
Record: 9-1
Week 12 result: Defeated Arkansas, 20-10

It wasn’t as decisive as its win over Florida a week prior, but Texas got the job done in a road game against a rival on Saturday. Quinn Ewers threw for a pair of touchdowns while the defense was strong again, allowing just 231 yards. I still believe that Texas is the most balanced team in the SEC and my favorite to win the conference.

4. Indiana (Last week: 4)
Record: 10-0
Week 12 result: Idle

I still believe Indiana is better than what people think. The Hoosiers have been so consistent all season long and the defense has been better than some might realize. Finally, the other rankings are starting to reflect where Indiana’s spot should be among the other playoff contenders. 

The biggest test for Indiana in the regular season still awaits. It takes on Ohio State this Saturday (noon ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app) and I think it’ll give the Buckeyes all they can handle in Columbus.

5. Penn State (Last week: 6)
Record: 9-1
Week 12 result: Defeated Purdue, 49-10

Penn State showed its consistency again on Saturday, handling Purdue. We know that James Franklin can handle business against non-ranked teams, so it’d be tough to imagine the Nittany Lions falling out of the playoff picture before the season ends. It’s looking like a strong possibility that Penn State will host a first-round playoff game, too, which should be fun. 

6. Georgia (Last week: 9)
Record: 8-2
Week 12 result: Defeated Tennessee, 31-17

That was a dominant performance by Georgia on Saturday. After going in an early hole in the first quarter, Georgia outscored Tennessee, 31-7, in the final three quarters. 

It was also the Georgia we’ve been waiting to see all season long. We saw a glimpse of it in the game against Alabama and in its win at Texas, though the offense wasn’t particularly great in that game. Saturday was the first time we saw Georgia pair a dominant defense with a quality, efficient offense in the same game. 

That was the most impressive we’ve seen Georgia all season long. Even though the win at Texas was a rarity in that we don’t see top-ranked SEC teams losing games at home too often, Saturday’s game was better because it was a more balanced and holistic performance. 

Carson Beck also had an impressive outing. I didn’t think Georgia had a Beck issue, contrary to some of the narratives out there. Rather, I thought Beck wasn’t getting much help at all when I watched Georgia’s tape. For example, the offensive line played poorly in its loss to Ole Miss. Beck was fine, and when his team decided to play to his level, they were pretty dominant. Ole Miss didn’t record a sack and only had two tackles for loss, so a much better performance from Georgia’s offensive line. The wide receivers played way better, and I liked Georgia’s offensive game plan, putting Beck on the move.  

That was the offensive performance we were accustomed to seeing with Georgia over the last couple of years. It ranked 50th in yards entering Saturday’s game after ranking in the top five in each of the last two years. Saturday’s game was more in line with a top-five performance than a No. 50 performance.

So, a great performance from Georgia puts it atop the other SEC teams with two losses in my ranking. That win showed us Georgia’s ceiling, which I think is the highest among that two-loss SEC group. That’s also how I ranked this group of two-loss SEC teams. We saw Georgia beat Texas on the road at its best, while none of the other teams have won a road game against that strong of an opponent. 

7. Ole Miss (Last week: 8)
Record: 8-2
Week 12 result: Idle

Ole Miss came in right behind Georgia because it was the only team to thoroughly dominate Georgia for an entire game. Maybe it was weather or environment-related, but it was dominant in its win over Georgia in Week 11. At its best, Ole Miss is right behind Georgia.

8. Alabama (Last week: 7)
Record: 8-2
Week 12 result: Defeated Mercer, 52-7

Alabama was great for a half against Georgia earlier this season. This team was tremendous on the road against LSU, though that win is already losing its luster a little bit with LSU losing to Florida on Saturday. Still, Alabama has looked better since its loss to Tennessee in the middle of October. 

9. Tennessee (Last week: 5)
Record: 8-2
Week 12 result: Lost to Georgia, 31-17

There are teams that can play great and there are teams that can win on the top level, which is winning a national championship. I just don’t feel that way about Tennessee right now. 

Tennessee is maxing out what it can do because of the way it plays offensively. It’s a hard opinion to give because it’s a productive offense that can look like one of the best in the nation at times, but the offense Tennessee uses is a spread offense that is predicated on space and athleticism. That offense can create big plays. However, it has a ceiling when the other team’s athletes are just as good as yours. If you don’t have a secondary option as an offense, you’re going to get shut down. That’s what happened to Tennessee on Saturday. 

The other great teams in the country seem to have an answer when their primary option or style isn’t working. I don’t feel that way about Tennessee, which is why I’m concerned about it at the top level. That doesn’t mean this team can’t be really good, but playing this way isn’t sustainable enough to win a national title. 

Still, I think this group of SEC teams is better than Notre Dame. They’ve shown they can beat each other this season. So, I decided to rank them consecutively. 

10. Notre Dame (Last week: 10)
Record: 9-1
Week 12 result: Defeated Virginia, 35-14

Notre Dame’s still very consistent. Just watch out for the Fighting Irish. They’re kind of lurking there with their strong defense (third in yards allowed and scoring). I do think Notre Dame’s game at USC is a tough one to finish the year as it might determine its playoff fate. 

If you’re wondering why I didn’t include Texas A&M as part of that grouping of two-loss SEC teams, it obviously had the loss to Notre Dame to start the season. But it also decisively fell to South Carolina on the road a couple of weeks ago and its best win was against LSU. So, I don’t think its ceiling is as high as the other four two-loss SEC teams. 

Joel Klatt is FOX Sports’ lead college football game analyst and the host of the podcast “The Joel Klatt Show.” Follow him at @joelklatt and subscribe to the “Joel Klatt Show” on YouTube.

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