College Football

College football rankings: Georgia remains on top while Ohio State, Notre Dame move up in RJ Young's Top 25

Updated Nov. 21, 2021 8:37 p.m. ET

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By RJ Young
FOX Sports College Football Writer

Editor’s note: Every Sunday morning during the college football season, RJ Young will release his updated Top 25 rankings.

With its 56-7 defeat of Michigan State on Saturday, Ohio State left no doubt about the front-runner to win the Big Ten Championship, with The Game against Michigan left to play.

Much will be said — and should be — about Buckeyes QB C.J. Stroud passing for nearly 400 yards with six TDs, wideouts Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson and Jaxon Smith-Njigba all going over 100 yards receiving and the Buckeyes jumping to a seven-touchdown lead by halftime.

The point to raise about Ohio State's College Football Playoff argument certainly isn’t the offense. The Buckeyes have had just five 1,000-yard receivers in their history. This year, they could have three.

In fact, Ohio State could join 2007 Tulsa as the only programs in history with a 4,000-yard passer, three 1,000-yard receivers and a 1,000-yard rusher. Buckeyes true freshman running back TreVeyon Henderson has already eclipsed that rushing mark.

I was a sophomore at Tulsa when quarterback Paul Smith and offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn put together the best offensive season I’d ever seen. That this Ohio State offense could join that group by the end of the semester is simply amazing.

On the other side of the ball, the Buckeyes' defense blanked Michigan State until the start of the fourth quarter. It allowed just 234 total yards, held Heisman candidate Kenneth Walker III — who had averaged more than 147 yards rushing per game — to just 25 yards on six rushes and allowed just five third-down conversions in 16 attempts.

Since losing to Oregon 35-28 at the Shoe in Week 2, the Buckeyes' defense has steadily improved and laid down a marker with its best performance of the season. It's certainly something for the CFP committee to consider with one game left in the regular season.

And now there are no more Ducks to line up in a row.

Results need to matter more than my or your opinion, and that is how I create my rankings, using rationality and reason and the following criteria:

1. How many AP Top-25 teams (ranked at the time of the matchup) a team has beaten.

2. A premium is placed on being undefeated. Power 5 teams, more than likely, play tougher schedules than Group of 5 teams.

3. Being undefeated supersedes strength of schedule, with the belief that winning every game is more difficult than losing a game to a good football team.

4. Results, résumé and winning matter. When two teams have identical résumés, that's when the eye test becomes necessary.

Here are my Top 25 teams in the country for Week 12:

1. Georgia Bulldogs (11-0)
Defeated FCS Charleston Southern 56-7

Top-25 wins: four

2. Cincinnati Bearcats (11-0)
Defeated Southern Methodist 48-14

Top-25 wins: one

3. UTSA Roadrunners (11-0)
Defeated UAB 34-31

Top-25 wins: zero

4. Alabama Crimson Tide (10-1)
Defeated Arkansas 42-35

Top-25 wins: four

5. Oklahoma State Cowboys (10-1)
Defeated Texas Tech 23-0

Top-25 wins: three

Oklahoma State clinches a spot in the Big 12 title game behind defense's performance

Oklahoma State clinched a spot in the Big 12 title game behind its defense's performance in a shutout of Texas Tech.

6. Ohio State Buckeyes (10-1)
Defeated Michigan State 56-7

Top-25 wins: two

7. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10-1)
Defeated Georgia Tech 55-0

Top-25 wins: one

8. Oklahoma Sooners (10-1)
Defeated Iowa State 28-21

Top-25 wins: one

Joel Klatt on Oklahoma Sooners' win: 'They keep their Playoff hopes alive'

Joel Klatt breaks down how the gritty win made possible by the Sooners' defense keeps Oklahoma's shot at the College Football Playoff alive.

9. Houston Cougars (10-1)
Defeated Memphis 31-13

Top-25 wins: one

10. Michigan Wolverines (10-1)
Defeated Maryland 59-18

Top-25 wins: zero

A Michigan trick play results in a 79-yard kickoff return touchdown by A.J. Henning

Michigan pulled off some trickery vs. Maryland. A.J. Henning took a kickoff 79 yards for a touchdown after Michael Barrett threw a lateral across the field to put the Wolverines up 38-10.

11. San Diego State Aztecs (10-1)
Defeated UNLV 28-20

Top-25 wins: zero

12. Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (10-1)
Defeated Liberty 42-14

Top-25 wins: zero

13. Baylor Bears (9-2)
Defeated Kansas State 20-10

Top-25 wins: three

Baylor gets 20-10 victory over Kansas St, Bohanon and Thompson leave with injuries

Baylor won 20-10 but lost QB Gerry Bohanon, who left the game in the first half with a hamstring injury.

14. Iowa Hawkeyes (9-2)
Defeated Illinois 33-23

Top-25 wins: three

Tyler Goodson rushes for 127 yards as Iowa holds off Illinois upset scare, 33-23

Tyler Goodson rushed for 127 yards to lead Iowa to a home victory over Illinois.

15. BYU Cougars (9-2)
Defeated Georgia Southern 34-17 

Top-25 wins: two

16. Oregon Ducks (9-2)
Lost to Utah 35-7

Top-25 wins: one

17. Michigan State Spartans (9-2)
Lost to Ohio State 56-7

Top-25 wins: two

18. Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (9-2)
Defeated Texas State 35-21

Top-25 wins: zero

19. Ole Miss Rebels (9-2)
Defeated Vanderbilt 31-13

Top-25 wins: two

20. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (9-2)
Lost to Clemson 48-27

Top-25 wins: one

21. Pittsburgh Panthers (9-2)
Defeated Virginia 48-38

Top-25 wins: zero

22. Appalachian State Mountaineers (9-2)
Defeated Troy 45-7

Top-25 wins: one

23. Texas A&M Aggies (8-3)
Defeated Prairie View A&M 52-3

Top-25 wins: two

24. Wisconsin Badgers (8-3)
Defeated Nebraska 35-28

Top-25 wins: two

25. North Carolina State Wolfpack (8-3)
Defeated Syracuse 41-17

Top-25 wins: one

RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast "The No. 1 Ranked Show with RJ Young." Follow him on Twitter at @RJ_Young, and subscribe to "The RJ Young Show" on YouTube. He is not on a StepMill.

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