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SALT LAKE CITY — The final College Football Playoff rankings were released Sunday and Utah will stay ranked.
The Utes moved up to No. 19 in the College Football Playoff rankings, jumping up one spot from last week at No. 20. The Utes moved up to No. 23 in the USA Today Amway Coaches Poll, jumping up one spot from last week’s ranking of No. 24, and remain unranked in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll after falling out of the rankings last Sunday.
Utah remains one of only five teams that have been ranked in every College Football Playoff rankings in the three years since its inception. Utah’s bowl destination will be determined at a later time Sunday. The Utes will likely be invited to either the Foster Farms Bowl or the Hyundai Sun Bowl.
The Pac-12 will be represented in the playoff with Washington coming in at No. 4 after a 41-10 win over then-No. 8 Colorado in the Pac-12 championship game. Washington is also ranked No. 4 in the AP and Coaches Poll. The Pac-12 has been involved in the playoff two out of the three years, missing out last season.
Also in the College Football Playoff rankings from the Pac-12 is No. 9 USC, No. 10 Colorado and No. 18 Stanford. The Pac-12 is tied with the ACC and SEC as the three conferences with five teams included in the latest rankings, followed by the Big Ten at four, Big 12 at three and the AAC at two. The MAC also has one team ranked.
Alabama stayed at No. 1 in the latest rankings and will face Washington in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta, Georgia on Saturday, Dec. 31 on ESPN. No. 2 Clemson will play No. 3 Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona on Saturday, Dec. 31 on ESPN. Just outside the playoff was No. 5 Penn State and No. 6 Michigan.
The selection committee set a new precedent Sunday with the Big Ten champion, Penn State, missing out on the playoff. Ohio State, which did not qualify for the Big Ten championship game, instead will be the team representing the conference in the playoff. Selection committee chairman Kirby Hocutt said Tuesday the committee’s responsibility was to “stay focused on our charge, and that is to rank the best teams in college football.”
Hocutt said Sunday the selection committee had a “spirited discussion,” but that Washington was the overall better team. He added that a lopsided loss to Michigan and a loss to Pittsburgh was the deciding factor in keeping Penn State out of the playoff. Had Washington’s strength of schedule been better, Hocutt said the committee wouldn’t have had such a hard time debating whether the Huskies should be included.
The remainder of the so-called New Year’s Six bowl games is as follows:
- Rose Bowl: No. 5 Penn State vs. No. 9 USC
- Orange Bowl: No. 6 Michigan vs. No. 11 Florida State
- Cotton Bowl: No. 15 Western Michigan vs. No. 8 Wisconsin
- Sugar Bowl: No. 7 Oklahoma vs. No. 14 Auburn
#CFBPlayoff Selection Day:
— CFBPlayoff (@CFBPlayoff) December 4, 2016
Final Top 25 Rankings pic.twitter.com/8Fwt1FBtXp
