UCLA rises to No. 9 in latest College Football Playoff rankings

UCLA moved two steps closer to playoff contention without playing a game.

The Bruins, who had a bye last week, rose from No. 11 to No. 9 in Tuesday’s latest release of the College Football Playoff rankings.

The new top four is Alabama, Oregon, Florida State and Mississippi State.

Alabama jumped from fifth to first after a 25-20 win over Mississippi State.

Texas Christian, which held the No. 4 spot last week, fell to No. 5 after a closer-than-expected win over Kansas.

Rounding out the top 10 are Ohio State at No. 6, followed by Baylor, Mississippi, UCLA and Georgia.

USC made its first appearance the rankings, debuting at No. 19 in advance of Saturday’s Pac-12 showdown game against UCLA.

The Pac-12 has six schools ranked in the top 19, including five from its South Division.

The top four schools in the final rankings on Dec. 7 will meet in semifinal games at the Rose and Sugar Bowls. The winners will play Jan. 12 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.