College Football

College football tiers: Georgia Bulldogs stand alone at the midseason point

Updated Oct. 14, 2021 7:10 p.m. ET

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By RJ Young
FOX Sports College Football Writer

With the 2021 college football season at its midway point, let's look at which teams stand the best chance to win the national title by separating them into tiers.

The tiers are based on three things: the eye test, each team's résumé and the remaining schedules. 

Basically, this is another way of saying what I think the College Football Playoff selection committee is going to do.

TIER 1: GEORGIA

Jordan Davis is the best player in the country right now. No one has an answer for the Georgia nose tackle, and he’s flanked by an outstanding group that demolished a damn good Arkansas team.

Cincinnati and Clemson each allow just 12.2 points per game and have two of three top-scoring defenses in the country. That's still nearly seven points more than Georgia allows (5.5).

The Bulldogs have allowed just 33 points in 2021. In fact, the past two national champions have held teams to 21.9 and 19.4 points per game, respectively.

That's the fewest points allowed through six games at UGA since 1935, when the Dawgs gave up just 24 points through six contests and the forward pass was still as unconventional as my Top 25.

In six games, Georgia has allowed fewer TDs (three) than field goals (four). And the defense itself has given up just two TDs.

The UGA defense is playing better than any offense in the country, and the best player on that unit is Davis.

I don't see why Davis winning the Heisman Trophy isn't an obvious choice. Just because a player plays defense doesn't mean he can't be the best player in the country.

This convention that QBs, WRs and RBs are the best players in the sport needs to be aired out. Having the ball doesn't make you the best player, even if it makes you the most important. But if you can't move it or score it, attention needs to be paid as to why.

And, consistently, Davis and the Bulldogs' defense have shown that no one can move the ball or score with anything approaching regularity in large part because of the 6-foot-6, 340-pound immovable object up front.

As for the argument about Davis' stats, this is why watching football is important. If a stat sheet made a player the best, Mike Leach would have an argument for his QB winning the Heisman every year.

Watch UGA's defense, and you'll see it's a bow and arrow: Davis is the hand that fires it.

2: ALABAMA, OHIO STATE, IOWA, CINCINNATI

If Bama wins out, the committee is going to put the defending champs in. The same is true of Ohio State and Iowa. It's Cincinnati that has no margin for error, though the AP has decided the Bearcats are a good football team after they whooped Notre Dame on the road.

3: OKLAHOMA, MICHIGAN STATE, MICHIGAN, KENTUCKY

I don't think my Sooners can afford a slip. They’ve been selected to play in the invitational too often but have played competitively only once as a one-loss team. However, if OU wins out, I believe it will be in.

Skip Bayless reacts to reports of Caleb Williams getting first team reps over Spencer Rattler at Oklahoma I UNDISPUTED

Skip Bayless reacts to reports of Caleb Williams getting first-team reps over Spencer Rattler.

I don't think Michigan State, Michigan or Kentucky is good enough to beat Ohio State, Alabama or Georgia presently. If I'm wrong, I'll be wrong with most of you, and the team in question will have earned more than our respect with an undefeated run that culminates in a league title. It'll be playing in the playoff.

4: OKLAHOMA STATE, COASTAL CAROLINA, WAKE FOREST, SOUTHERN METHODIST, PENN STATE, OREGON, ARIZONA STATE

Oklahoma State has the easiest road to the playoff. If the Cowboys win out — which I doubt will happen — they’ll get in because they play in a conference with Texas and Oklahoma. Take advantage of that while it lasts, and make this season count if you can. 

Historically, Oklahoma owns the Bedlam rivalry like an old couch no one will come take off your front lawn, and the Pokes still gotta overcome Texas this weekend.

If we’re matching résumés with results, Oklahoma State is a Tier 2 team because of its two wins over ranked teams and its 5-0 record. But since we’re looking at how their "Jimmys" stack up against others’ "Joes," as much as we look at résumés, we’re sticking OSU in Tier 4.

Coastal Carolina's Jamey Chadwell on the CFB Playoff expansion, 'I'm for it, obviously.'

Coastal Carolina coach Jamey Chadwell joins RJ Young on "The No. 1 Ranked Show" to discuss the possibility of a college football playoff expansion.

I doubt Penn State can get past Michigan State, Michigan and Ohio State to earn a rematch against Big Ten West favorite Iowa. But a road to the CFP is still there for the Nittany Lions if they can take advantage of it.

Coastal Carolina doesn’t get enough respect as a CFP contender from folks not named RJ on a national front. So it's doubtful the Chanticleers can earn an invitation without a bunch of teams wrecking in front of them. Neither can SMU, even if the Mustangs beat currently No. 3 Cincinnati and finish as undefeated American Athletic Conference Champs.

Wake Forest doesn’t have a ranked opponent left, nor the respect of voters and more than likely the committee. However, here’s an interesting thought: Would you put an undefeated Group of 5 league champion (such as Cincinnati, Coastal or SMU) into the CFP over an undefeated Power 5 league champion in Wake Forest with one win over a Top 25 team? It’s worth discussing with NC State remaining as the Demon Deacons’ only ranked opponent.

Interestingly, though, the last four games on Wake's schedule are its toughest: North Carolina, No. 22 NC State, Clemson and Boston College.

And, of course, there’s the Pac-12. I think only if Oregon and Arizona State meet in the league title game does the conference stand a chance at playing in the playoff.

Add to this the fact that Oregon still has that Ohio State win in its back pocket and ASU just beat the same Stanford team that knocked off the Ducks on The Farm … and that twice-removed super-Saiyan transitive energy already gives ASU a victory over Ohio State. If the Sun Devils beat a one-loss Oregon in the title game, the playoff puzzle might well be another example of the need to expand the CFP … and quickly.

I did not include Texas-San Antonio here because, frankly, I don’t believe the committee would put an undefeated Conference USA champion in the playoff this season. Again, it doesn’t matter that I believe they deserve a shot at the title. It matters that the committee — and the public, for that matter — simply will not abide such a thing.

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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