BYU, Indiana and SMU were snubbed in the selection committee’s early picks, and the Big 12 and ACC took a backseat to the Big Ten and SEC in overall numbers.

The first College Football Playoff rankings of the new 12-team era was released Tuesday. Oregon, as expected, was No. 1 but there were surprises.

With three or four games remaining in the regular season for the top playoff contenders, chaos across the Power Four could ...