The Pac-12 is the odd Big Five conference out of the College Football Playoff.
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The winners will play for the National Championship on January 11th of next year in Phoenix, AZ. Oklahoma had this weekend off due to the Big 12 not having a championship game, but it still won the conference by putting up an insane amount of points on everyone. But there are two teams worthy of competing for a national title not in the final four who would have made the 8-team Playoff: Iowa and Ohio State.
Wrong, Long said. The committee took into account the Spartans’ two wins over Top 10 teams, capped by the Big Ten championship over Iowa. But would No. 2 Alabama really be at a disadvantage playing Oklahoma in Arlington?
Clemson goes into the playoffs as the only undefeated team. Alabama lost to eventual national champion Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. The Tigers are 45-7 since losing the Orange Bowl at the end of the 2011 season….
Jeff Long leads the selection committee – a 12-person group that makes the final decisions on playoff matchups. The question is whether Michigan State jumps Oklahoma to move to No. 3. Despite Clemson’s top ranking, Oklahoma is the odds-on favorite to win the Orange Bowl.
“We’ve got three top 10 wins”.
QUARTERBACK STARS: That Russell Athletic Bowl matchup last season was played without both Clemson’s Deshaun Watson (injured) and Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield (sitting out to satisfy transfer rules) on the field.
Michigan State’s gain was obviously Iowa’s loss, as the Hawkeyes dropped to No. 6 following their 16-13 defeat. Because Alabama, despite their one loss, are SEC champions, a pairing of words (SEC is a word, right?) that voters, AP and committee alike, simply salivate when hearing. The best way to describe Mark Dantonio’s squad may be “solid but unspectacular”, as the Spartans will never blow you away, but they have the unbelievable ability to come through in close games.
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Alabama opened this season with a 35-17 victory over Big Ten team Wisconsin at AT&T Stadium, the home of the Dallas Cowboys and the Cotton Bowl since the 2009 season. Alabama held onto its seeding by defeating Florida in the SEC title game. The CFP website references noon PST for the announcement of its final top 25 rankings, and that’s three hours after the show is set to begin. “Very little discussion as Clemson was clearly the Number One team in the nation”.
