Ohio State opened at No. 6 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings of 2017, behind No. 5 Oklahoma.
The entire Top 25 is as follows.
| Logo | Team | Record | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
University of Georgia | 8-0 |
| 2 |  |
University of Alabama | 8-0 |
| 3 |  |
University of Notre Dame | 7-1 |
| 4 |  |
Clemson University | 7-1 |
| 5 |  |
University of Oklahoma | 7-1 |
| 6 |  |
Ohio State University | 7-1 |
| 7 |  |
Penn State University | 7-1 |
| 8 |  |
Texas Christian University | 7-1 |
| 9 |  |
University of Wisconsin | 8-0 |
| 10 |  |
University of Miami | 7-0 |
| 11 |  |
Oklahoma State University | 7-1 |
| 12 |  |
University of Washington | 7-1 |
| 13 |  |
Virginia Tech | 7-1 |
| 14 |  |
Auburn University | 6-2 |
| 15 |  |
Iowa State University | 6-2 |
| 16 |  |
Mississippi State University | 6-2 |
| 17 |  |
University of Southern California | 7-2 |
| 18 |  |
University of Central Florida | 7-0 |
| 19 |  |
Louisiana State University | 6-2 |
| 20 |  |
North Carolina State University | 6-2 |
| 21 |  |
Stanford University | 6-2 |
| 22 |  |
University of Arizona | 6-2 |
| 23 |  |
University of Memphis | 7-1 |
| 24 |  |
Michigan State University | 6-2 |
| 25 |  |
Washington State University | 7-2 |
Selection Committee Members
Kirby Hocutt, Chair
Director of Athletics, Texas Tech University
Experience as athletics director at three FBS institutions in three separate conferences.
College football student-athlete, four-year letterman and all-conference selection.
Frank Beamer
Former Head Coach, Virginia Tech
Forty-nine years of college football experience as a coach and student-athlete.
Winningest active coach in FBS history at the time of his retirement.
Jeff Bower
Former Head Coach, University of Southern Mississippi
Spent 29 years at the University of Southern Mississippi as a coach and student-athlete.
Named “Coach of the Decade” by Conference USA in 2004.
Herb Deromedi
Former Head Coach, Central Michigan University
Member of the College Football Hall of Fame.
Spent a 38 years at CMU and retired as the winningest coach in Mid-American Conference history.
Chris Howard
President, Robert Morris University
Harvard M.B.A. and Rhodes Scholar who earned his doctorate from Oxford.
College football student-athlete and First Team Academic All-American.
Tom Jernstedt
Former NCAA Executive Vice President
Thirty-eight year career at the NCAA, serving as senior-level executive, including executive vice president, deputy executive director and chief operating officer.
Four-year scholarship football student-athlete at the University of Oregon (1963-1967).
Bobby Johnson
Former Head Coach, Vanderbilt University
Thirty-nine years of college football experience as a coach and student-athlete.
2008 Southeastern Conference (SEC) Coach of the Year.
Jeff Long
Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics, University of Arkansas
More than 35 years of college football experience as an administrator, coach and student-athlete.
Has served in athletics administration, coaching or on staff at nine FBS institutions.
Rob Mullens
Director of Athletics, University of Oregon
Member of the Positive Coaching Alliance’s National Advisory Board.
Guided Oregon to its best finish ever in the Directors’ Cup, a national assessment of an athletic department’s overall achievements.
Dan Radakovich
Director of Athletics, Clemson University
More than 30 years of college football experience as an athletics director and football student-athlete.
Athletic administrative positions at five FBS institutions.
Gene Smith
Director of Athletics, Ohio State University
Over 40 years of college football experience as an athletics director, administrator and student-athlete.
Two-time winner of the Sports Business Journal Athletic Director of the Year.
Steve Wieberg
Former College Football Reporter, USA TODAY
Sportswriter for more than 30 years and top college football writer for USA Today.
Named by Chronicle of Higher Education as one of the “10 Most Powerful People in College Sports.”
Tyrone Willingham
Former Head Coach of Three FBS Institutions
Thirty-six years of college football experience as head coach, assistant coach and student-athlete.
Named 2002 Coach of the Year by ESPN and Home Depot.