Georgia football is used to this by now. The Bulldogs are prepping for a key game while their spot in the first College Football Playoff rankings will be revealed Tuesday night.
Quarterback Carson Beck is trying to reach the playoff for the first time as a starter, but Malaki Starks and Tate Ratledge are among those who were starters during the Bulldogs' second straight national title in 2022.
That came in a four-team playoff format, but the field is expanded to 12 this year.
Georgia is No. 2 in both the US LBM Coaches Poll and the Associated Press polls, but the selection committee will come up with its own pecking order.
The Bulldogs head to playoff contender Ole Miss Saturday in Oxford. It is part of an SEC schedule chock full of games that will have major impacts on how the first expanded playoff field will shake out come selection Sunday on Dec. 8.
The first College Football Playoff rankings will be released on Tuesday Nov. 5 on ESPN's reveal show. It is the first of five rankings that will be released each Tuesday before the final rankings come out.
The rankings will be revealed on a show that starts at 7 p.m. Each weekly ranking will come out on Tuesday nights, but the time of the show varies depending on the day.
The safe bet is that Georgia's first slot in the rankings will mirror the two major polls and the Bulldogs will be ranked No. 2 after No. 1 Oregon, but the committee could consider Ohio State for that No. 2 spot.
The 12-team field will be released on a top 25 rankings show that will air on ESPN. It can also be streamed on ESPN+.
The field has been expanded from four teams to 12. That just so happens to come after a controversial 2023 when unbeaten Florida State was left out of the field and 12-1 Georgia was also outside the top 4.
The 12-team field includes five conference champions ranked highest by the committee and seven at-large selections. The four highest-ranked conference champions will be the top four seeds and receive a bye into the quarterfinals. The fifth highest-ranked conference champion will be seeded where it was ranked or No. 12 if not in the top 12.
Teams ranked in the top 4 that don't win their conference will be seeded starting at No. 5. Teams seeded 5 through 12 will play in the first round with higher seeds hosting on campus. Playoff quarterfinals and semifinals will at bowl sites and the championship game is in Atlanta on Jan. 20.