Penn State received 1,203 points in the final AP Top 25 poll, just eight behind Texas for fourth. Ohio State was No. 1, followed by Notre Dame and Oregon. Penn State has finished in the AP top 10 five times in James Franklin's 11 seasons as head coach. Franklin's teams have seven top-20 finishes since 2016.

The Nittany Lions ended in the top five for the first time since 2005. It’s the first time the Big Ten has had three teams in the final top five. Ohio State was No. 1 and Oregon was No. 3.

Boise State and Arizona State should have had to play in the first round. Not granting first-round byes to conference champions is one area where the CFP has to improve. But the Broncos and Sun Devils held their own, especially Arizona State. Storming back and taking Texas to OT took some serious guts from Kenny Dillingham’s team.