With the dawn of a new era of college football that includes the addition of new teams to the four major conferences (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC) — the collapse of another (Pac-12) — and the first year of the extended 12-team College Football Playoff, rankings have taken on new meaning.
Voters are no longer the sole arbiters of who is and who isn’t a national champion. Nor is the now decade-old institution known as the CFP Selection Committee. Now, at least four spots in the 12-team playoff will be decided by a conference championship, while the remaining eight will be decided according to a ranking.
[Related: 2024 college football rankings: RJ Young’s Ultimate 134]
So, with that said, it is fitting that Associated Press poll voters agree with me about who should begin the…
