CFP rankings: Washington joins Georgia, Ohio State, Michigan in Top 4

Nov. 22 (UPI) - Georgia, Ohio State and Michigan remained leaders in the College Football Playoff rankings, while Washington passed Florida State to join the Top 4.

The Georgia Bulldogs held the No. 1 spot for the second-consecutive week in the fourth edition of the rankings, released Tuesday on ESPN by the College Football Playoff selection committee.

The undefeated (11-0) reigning national champions beat Tennessee (7-4) on Saturday to stay on top. The Volunteers dropped from No. 18 to No. 21 because of the setback.

The Bulldogs will battle Georgia Tech (6-5) on Saturday in Atlanta. The Volunteers will host Vanderbilt on Saturday in Knoxville.

The No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes (11-0) beat Minnesota on Saturday in Columbus, Ohio. They will take on No. 3 Michigan (11-0) on Saturday in Ann Arbor, Mich. The Wolverines edged Maryland 31-24 on Saturday in College Park, Md.

No. 4 Washington (11-0) edged Oregon State (8-3) on Saturday in Corvallis, Ore., to climb inside the Top 4. The Beavers dropped from No. 11 to No. 16 because of the loss.

The Huskies will host Washington State (5-6) on Saturday in Seattle. The Beavers will battle Oregon (10-1) on Friday in Eugene, Ore. The Ducks crushed Arizona State to stay at No. 6 in the rankings.

The Florida State Seminoles (11-0) crushed North Alabama (3-8), but dropped from No. 4 to No. 5 in the rankings. The Seminoles, who lost star quarterback Jordan Travis to a season-ending leg injury, will face Florida (5-6) on Saturday in Gainesville, Fla.

The No. 7 Texas Longhorns (10-1), No. 8 Alabama Crimson Tide (10-1), No. 9 Missouri Tigers (9-2) and No. 10 Louisville Cardinals (10-1) held their Top 10 spots in the rankings.

Texas will host Texas Tech (6-5) on Friday in Austin. Alabama will take on Auburn (6-5) on Saturday in Auburn, Ala. Missouri will face Arkansas (4-7) on Friday in Fayetteville, Ark. Louisville will host Kentucky (6-5) on Saturday in Louisville, Ky.

Penn State beat Rutgers (6-5) to climb from No. 12 to No. 11. The Nittany Lions (9-2) will meet Michigan State (4-7) on Friday in East Lansing, Mich. The Ole Miss Rebels (9-2) beat Louisiana Monroe (2-9) to climb from No. 13 to No. 12.

The Rebels will battle Mississippi State (5-6) on Thursday in Mississippi State.

The No. 14 Oklahoma Sooners (9-2) beat BYU to jump from No. 14 to No. 13. They will host TCU (5-6) on Friday in their regular-season finale.

The LSU Tigers (8-3) beat Georgia State (6-5) to move from No. 15 to No. 14. They will host Texas A&M (7-4) on Saturday in Baton Rouge, La.

The Arizona Wildcats (8-3) beat Utah (7-4) to jump from No. 17 to No. 15. They will face Arizona State (3-8) on Saturday in Tempe, Ariz. The Utes, ranked No. 22 last week, dropped out of the Top 25.

The Iowa Hawkeyes (9-2) beat Illinois (5-6) 15-13 on Saturday, but dropped from No. 16 to No. 17. They will take on Nebraska (5-6) on Friday in Lincoln, Neb.

Notre Dame (8-3) beat Wake Forest (4-7) to move up from No. 19 to No. 18. They will face Stanford (3-8) on Saturday in Stanford, Calif.

The Kansas State Wildcats (8-3) beat Kansas (7-4) to jump from No. 21 to No. 19. They will take on Iowa State (6-5) on Saturday in Manhattan, Kan. The Jayhawks, ranked No. 25 last week, dropped out of the rankings.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys (8-3) beat Houston (4-7) to climb from No. 23 to No. 20. They will host BYU on Saturday in Stillwater.

The North Carolina State Wolfpack (8-3) climbed into the Top 25 for the first time this season. They beat Virginia Tech (5-6) to claim the No. 22 spot. The Wolfpack will host North Carolina (8-3) on Saturday in Raleigh.

The Tar Heels, ranked No. 20 last week, lost to Clemson on Saturday to drop out of the rankings. Clemson (7-4) climbed to No. 24 because of that victory. The Tigers will face South Carolina (5-6) on Saturday in Columbia, S.C.

The Tulane Green Wave (10-1) beat Florida Atlantic to climb from No. 24 to No. 23. The Green Wave will host UTSA (8-3) on Friday in their regular-season finale.

The Liberty Flames (11-0) beat UMass (3-8) to earn the No. 25 spot in the rankings. They will battle UTEP on Saturday in El Paso, Texas.

The fifth edition of the rankings will be released at 7 p.m. EST Nov. 28 on ESPN. The final rankings will be announced at noon Dec. 3 on the same network.