The second release of the 2026 College Football Playoff rankings was released on Tuesday, and it could have been worse for Ohio State. The chance of getting back into position to be a part of the 2026 CFP is still a long shot, but at least the Buckeyes know what they are dealing with for the last three games of the season.

And that place Ohio State must come from is a ranking of No. 20, down eight spots from the No. 12 spot it occupied during the first set of rankings last week. It's certainly not ideal. The Buckeyes have lost two straight games to put themselves in dire straits, and done it in rather unassuming and embarrassing fashion, but the Buckeyes are indeed favored to win their last three games against Northwestern at home, on the road vs. Nebraska, and then back in the 'Shoe against arch-rival Michigan.

If Ohio State can go unbeaten through those, who knows?

The top ten of the CFP rankings, well ahead of Ohio State at this point, are Georgia (1), Utah (2), Alabama (3), UCLA (4), Notre Dame (5), Texas (6), Miami (FL) (7), Tennessee (8), Indiana (9), and BYU (10).

Here's a look at the rest of the second release of the CFP top 25 unveiled on Tuesday

Second release of the 2026 College Football Playoff rankings