Saturday's Ranked Slate Runs Into the Night, and the First Playoff Ranking Lands Tuesday
Georgia and Florida renew their rivalry in Atlanta instead of Jacksonville, an Ohio State team without its starting quarterback plays at Southern California tonight, and on Tuesday the season's first College Football Playoff ranking turns a month of argument into a list.
The college football calendar turns a page this weekend, and USA TODAY's Saturday live file marks the moment plainly: the race for the College Football Playoff is about to hit the home stretch, the margin for error is disappearing, and the season's first CFP ranking will be released Tuesday at 7 p.m. Eastern. Everything played today is evidence for that list.
The afternoon's headline game is an old rivalry in a new building. No. 3 Georgia and No. 20 Florida meet at 3:30 p.m. Eastern at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta - not Jacksonville, the rivalry's usual home - in one of three Saturday matchups between ranked teams in the Coaches Poll. Georgia is playing to protect a top-four seed's inside track; Florida is playing to become the result the selection committee cannot ignore on Tuesday.
The night slate is heavier. No. 1 Miami plays at North Carolina and No. 11 Texas hosts Mississippi State, both at 7:30 p.m. Eastern - the Longhorns' game files on this station tonight on its final - while No. 2 Ohio State plays at No. 25 Southern California without starting quarterback Julian Sayin, who was injured two weeks ago against Indiana and is out indefinitely, leaving the Buckeyes to defend a 5-0 Big Ten start with a backup in Los Angeles.
The day's early lesson in humility came in Foxborough, where Navy - owner of the nation's No. 3 rushing offense - led No. 6 Notre Dame 13-7 late in the first half, with 152 rushing yards on its three scoring drives, before the Irish steadied. It is the kind of afternoon that explains why Tuesday's ranking, and not October's polls, is the one that will count.
