College football rankings: Bottom 25 Playoff field features Kansas from Power Five, No. 1 seed UMass

Anybody can rank the best teams, but only The Bottom 25 ranks the worst each week of the season

By Tom Fornelli

Dec 16, 2020 at 11:28 am ET • 5 min read

CBS Sports Graphic

There's still a week remaining in the college football regular season for many teams, but it looks as though The Bottom 25 Playoff field is set. There would be contenders for one of those four spots if every team still had a game left, but it's going to be a quiet weekend in The Bottom 25.

Of the 25 teams in the rankings this week, only three have a game scheduled. Of those three teams, only one is in The Bottom 20 -- and they're ranked No. 20.

Unlike the ACC, I did not plan things this way to allow our playoff teams an extra week to prepare. I'm putting in calls to all of these schools, trying to convince them to play one another this weekend to set up some drama. So far, though, I'm getting sent straight to a lot of voicemails.

The Bottom 25 is more important to some than others. Anyway, on to this week's rankings.

The Bottom 25

Rank	Record	Breakdown
25. Middle Tennessee	3-6	The Blue Raiders haven't played a game since Nov. 21, and they have spent that time hovering just outside our rankings. Unfortunately for them, enough teams dropped out this week to push them back in. Whether they finish the season here will depend on the teams around them. (Last Week: Not Ranked)
24. Illinois	2-5	Things seemed to be trending in the right direction for the Illini after winning two straight, but two losses to finish the year put them right back in The Bottom 25 and in search of a new coach. Lovie Smith was fired after five seasons and too much time in these rankings. Rod Smith will serve as interim this weekend against Penn State in THE BOTTOM 25 GAME OF THE CENTURY OF THE WEEK. (NR)
23. Michigan State	2-5	Sparty is back in the rankings after consecutive losses to Ohio State and Penn State. This weekend, they'll be making up the Maryland game that was postponed earlier this season. (NR)
22. Baylor	2-7	Baylor's roster was so depleted for its 42-3 loss to Oklahoma State on Saturday that I'm not even sure it should've played the game. The Bears' season is over, barring a bowl invite that I'm not sure they'd accept. (NR)
21. Southern Miss	3-7	The Eagles weren't just able to get a game in for the first time since Nov. 21 -- they won it! They beat FAU 45-31 to end the season on a high note, though it wasn't enough to escape The Bottom 25. (17)
20. Mississippi State	3-7	It feels like years ago that Mississippi State beat LSU 44-34 and the world thought the Air Raid was about to take over the SEC. Since then, the Bulldogs have 112 points in eight games (14 points per game), and their lone win was against a winless Vanderbilt. Perhaps they can finish the year on a high note against Missouri this weekend. (25)
19. Navy	3-7	It was a rough season for Navy. It started 3-2 but then dropped two games to Houston and SMU before having three straight games postponed. Since returning from that time off, the Midshipmen lost three more and managed only 13 points. Finishing the season with a 15-0 loss to Army was just the sour cherry on top of a rancid sundae. (24)
18. South Carolina	2-8	The Gamecocks were off last week and they're off again this week. I don't think anybody associated with the program has a problem with that. (21)
17. Texas State	2-10	I can't wait to be higher than anybody else in the country on Texas State going into next season. (19)
16. Colorado State	1-3	Colorado State's game against Utah State was canceled after Utah State players opted to sit the game out in protest. It was officially ruled a forfeit, but that does nothing for the Rams in my rankings. (18)
15. Duke	2-9	The Blue Devils were blasted 56-35 by a Florida State team that hadn't played in a month. Apparently, the Seminoles used that time to prepare for Duke! As for the Blue Devils, their season comes to an end with their lone wins coming against a Syracuse team you're about to see in this poll and Charlotte. (22)
14. Syracuse	1-10	The Orange didn't play this week, and their season is over. It was a long, unpleasant slog, but I salute the players who soldiered through. (14)
13. South Florida	1-8	The Bulls' season ended a few weeks ago. In the minds of many, it was not soon enough. (12)
12. Temple	1-6	Like South Florida, Temple's season ended a few weeks ago. It did add a new QB for next season, though, as Georgia's D'Wan Mathis announced he'd be transferring to the Owls next season. (11)
11. Utah State	1-4	Utah State had a big week for a team that didn't play. It hired a new coach in Blake Anderson, and then its players opted to sit out the Colorado State game after taking exception to remarks from school president Noelle Cockett. (10)
10. Akron	1-5	I guess when you go as long without a win as Akron did, you might suffer a letdown? Or maybe Buffalo is just an outstanding team? Whatever narrative you prefer, the final score was Buffalo 56, Akron 7. The Zips are on to 2021. (13)
9. Northern Illinois	0-6	There's no such thing as a pleasant 0-6 season, but Northern Illinois' was tougher to swallow than most. After a slow start to the season against Buffalo and Central Michigan, the Huskies' last four losses came by an average of 8.5 points each. (9)
8. Vanderbilt	0-9	Listen, Vanderbilt didn't win any games this season, but at least it made a lot of foolish people angry. Also, I think it made a terrific decision in hiring Notre Dame defensive coordinator and former Vanderbilt fullback Clark Lea. (7)
7. FIU	0-5	The Panthers' season came to an end a few weeks ago, as they had more games canceled than they played. (6)
6. Arizona	0-5	My ranking system caps margin of victory at 50 points, which is good news for Arizona following a 70-7 loss to rival Arizona State. Of course, I did the math myself to see what would've happened had I not capped the MOV, and Arizona still wouldn't have qualified for The Bottom 25 Playoff. (8)
5. ULM	0-10	The Warhawks' season is over, and despite the expected protestations of Bottom 25 fans everywhere, they will not be playing for a Bottom 25 title in 2020. (5)
4. UNLV	0-6	I'm still angry about Max Gilliam having to apologize for the sushi thing. Still, I will not hold that against the Rebels once The Bottom 25 Playoff begins. I am magnanimous, if nothing else. (3)
3. Kansas	0-9	Kansas' game against Texas was canceled, giving them more time to prepare for The Bottom 25 Playoff. (4)
2. Bowling Green	0-5	Listen, I don't know how it's going to go, but I would put a lot of money on a Bowling Green matchup against UMass in The Bottom 25 Championship. (2)
1. UMass	0-4	Despite the protestations of Dabo Swinney and the entire SEC, The Bottom 25 Selection Committee believes it saw enough from UMass in only four games to declare them the No. 1 seed in The Bottom 25 Playoff. (1)