College Football Playoff rankings: Joel Klatt's takeaways from third CFP rankings

The latest release of the College Football Playoff rankings was a bit interesting, even if it was a bit anticlimactic. That's a good thing, though, because that's how this should go, unlike what happened in the four-team era.

Oregon, Ohio State, Texas , Penn State and Indiana held their respective spots in the top five for a second straight week. At the backend of the rankings, Illinois slid in at No. 25, which is a bit of a boost to Penn State. Also, Missouri remained at 23 after a loss.

You can take a full look at the rankings here. Now, let me share my key takeaways from the third CFP rankings of the 2024 season. 

While many focused on Indiana's ranking, the ranking that stood out to me the most was Miami (Fla.) at No. 8. My first thought was, "In what world is Miami better than Ole Miss, Georgia and Tennessee," who were ranked ninth, 10th and 11th, respectively. I just don't agree with that ranking. This team has been living on the edge. It has a great quarterback and an offense that has to outscore you. 

But that's all that Miami has. Miami's defense isn't solid. It lost to Georgia Tech. It probably should've lost to Cal and Virginia Tech. Yet, the committee is telling us that Miami is better than Ole Miss, who has beaten Georgia. It's saying that Miami is better than Georgia, which has beaten Texas and Tennessee. C'mon.

I'm not trying to tee off on Miami. I like Miami and the playoff would be great with it in it. Miami will also have the opportunity to play itself into the playoff.

Having Miami at No. 8, I thought the committee might be trolling Kirby Smart by placing it ahead of Georgia because maybe it's sick of comments like this: 

"I don't know what they're looking for," Smart said. "I don't. I wish they could