Even in college football, timing is everything.
The first College Football Playoff rankings brought some clarity and some controversy. The clarity is that the ACC is not highly-regarded, with just three teams in the top 25 and the highest ranked, Virginia, sitting at No. 14. But a few spots down is the Hurricanes at No. 18 and that's where the controversy comes in.
Miami is ranked eight sports lower than Notre Dame, a team it beat 27-24 in Week 1 of the season. Both teams are 6-2, but currently the committee values the Irish's six-game win streak over the Hurricanes' early-season victory.
So no G5 teams ranked.
— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoATH) November 5, 2025
And it appears the only head-to-head that doesn't matter is Miami against Notre Dame.
Head-to-head matters, but optics matter more
I'm not here to justify Notre Dame being ahead of Miami or Texas or Louisville or Oklahoma or any other team. The CFP committee has always said they are picking the best teams in order, not the most deserving or most logical. So in determining the best team, head-to-head matters as it should, but the optics matter a little more. And right now, the optics say the Hurricanes are a fading team.
And the committee isn't wrong. We all see that Miami isn't the same team it was back in early October. The Hurricanes have not been impressive since the fourth quarter against FSU. The quarterback play of Carson Beck has been mediocre at best. They are not showing the dominance at the line of scrimmage that was the identity of the team in September, and, more importantly, they are NOT winning.
The committee wants risers, not faders
Before complaining about where Miami is ranked, ask yourself why should the Hurricanes be ranked higher? They've lost two out of three, and they were tied 7-7 with lowly Stanford at halftime before pulling away in the second half forthe win. Can Miami recover? Absolutely, but are we more confident in the Hurricanes winning out or dropping at least one more game?
Heather Dinich predicts the committee will rank Notre Dame higher than Miami since the two teams are going in opposite directions. pic.twitter.com/xUAb6X8vDS
— Grant Speaks (@GrantSpeaks1) November 2, 2025
Texas and Utah, while some might think they are ranked too high, are a perfect example of peaking at the right time. The committee wants a bracket of 12 teams coming into the playoffs hot. Miami is an example of a team that's losing momentum. If both teams win out and finish 10-2, I believe Miami will be ranked ahead of Notre Dame, but Tuesday's message from the committee was that they don't believe in Miami right now.
Things can turn around, but the Hurricanes need to find their second wind, and it needs to happen quickly, preferably this Saturday against a struggling Syracuse team.