Warde Manuel spoke with ESPN’s Rece Davis on Tuesday night after the initial CFP rankings were revealed on the network.

This is Manuel’s first rankings reveal as the chair of the CFP selection committee. After the rankings were revealed, Davis asked Manuel to explain why the committee ranked No. 2 Ohio State 1 spot ahead of No. 3 Georgia.

Manuel, who is Michigan’s athletic director, said it came down to the committee believing Ohio State’s loss — at No. 1 Oregon — was less damaging than Georgia’s defeat at No. 11 Alabama.

“They both had great wins in terms of on the road, Ohio State against Penn State this week, Georgia at Texas, but what we felt is, in terms of the losses they had, Ohio State lost to No. 1 Oregon by 1 and Georgia lost at Alabama, who is ranked No. 11,” Manuel said. “So that was really the difference. I mean, we’re splitting hairs in terms of looking at 2 great times.”

Ohio State’s big win over Penn State this past weekend means the Buckeyes are now heavily favored to make it to the Big Ten Championship Game for a potential rematch with the Ducks.

Georgia has a very difficult rest-of-season schedule, so it’s possible the Bulldogs could leapfrog ahead of Ohio State in the committee rankings prior to championship weekend. UGA still has regular-season games remaining against 2 top-10 teams in Ole Miss and Tennessee, with the matchup in Oxford coming this weekend.