Things might just work out in the end.

Right now, the College Football Playoff selection committee faces a challenging situation as they rank unbeaten teams alongside those with one or two losses. This comes during a time of significant conference expansion and realignment, which has taken away the straightforward head-to-head tiebreaker that once guided these rankings in the four-team playoff era.

The SEC remains the most complicated scenario, with seven teams overall and eight teams within conference play boasting two or fewer losses.

This week, the SEC had nine teams featured in the CFP rankings released on Tuesday: No. 3 Texas, No. 7 Tennessee, No. 10 Alabama, No. 11 Mississippi, No. 12 Georgia, No. 15 Texas A&M, No. 21 South Carolina, No. 22 LSU, and No. 23 Missouri.

South Carolina, a newcomer to the rankings with three losses in the SEC, achieved wins against Texas A&M and Vanderbilt in the past fortnight.

However, the main highlight was Georgia’s position, which fell behind the two teams that have defeated them – Alabama and Mississippi. The Bulldogs and Army topped Tuesday night’s list of winners and losers:

Winners

Army

Army moved up one spot to No. 24 thanks to Tulane entering the rankings at No. 25. Although Louisiana-Lafayette is still in contention in the Sun Belt with just one loss, the American Athletic Conference will eventually present a Group of Five champion that could take an automatic playoff bid if No. 13 Boise State does not win the Mountain West. Looking ahead, Army will face No. 8 Notre Dame next Saturday, followed by Texas-San Antonio and Navy. Even if they lose to the Fighting Irish, having Tulane rise in the rankings before their match in early December would give Army a chance for a significant win.

Indiana

No. 5 Indiana managed to hold onto its position against No. 6 Brigham Young and remains in good shape for the playoffs, even if they lose to Ohio State next weekend. Although BYU could have edged ahead with a strong rivalry win against Utah, they needed a late touchdown, aided by a controversial penalty, to secure a narrow victory. Meanwhile, Indiana struggled offensively but scraped by with a 20-15 win over Michigan.

Mississippi

The committee deserves kudos for recognizing important head-to-head matchups in the SEC, placing Mississippi and Alabama above Georgia. Prior to the rankings, it was expected that Georgia’s strong schedule and victories over Texas and Clemson would give them an advantage over the Rebels. However, Mississippi’s decisive 28-10 victory against Georgia – a team seen as an SEC frontrunner – firmly places them in contention for an at-large spot if they win out.

Losers

Georgia

This ranking is not ideal but could have been worse for the Bulldogs. The use of head-to-head results will directly impact rankings, potentially leaving Georgia out of the SEC if only four teams go to the playoffs. Nonetheless, there is still a chance for Georgia’s fortunes to change with a win against Tennessee this Saturday, which could see them leapfrog back ahead of Mississippi. Currently, the message from the committee is clear: Georgia needs to prove its worth to stay in the playoff conversation and is likely out of contention with a loss on Saturday.

Miami

With No. 4 Penn State and No. 9 Miami having closely matched résumés, both have several wins against lower-tier teams but lack standout victories. Miami’s best win is against No. 19 Louisville, while Penn State’s sole loss is to Ohio State. The committee’s decision reflects concerns about Miami’s performance, particularly their struggles in various ACC games against teams like Virginia Tech and California. Overall, this ranking setback negatively affects Miami’s chances for an at-large playoff spot but was not as disastrous as expected going into the rankings on Tuesday. As it stands, Miami must win against No. 13 SMU in the upcoming ACC championship game to have any shot at making the playoff field.