So the selection committee did the Crimson Tide a favor by bracketing Michigan State with Alabama and keeping Oklahoma in the other side.
Advertisement
Everyone skips home whistling, right? But in the hypothetically-expanded eight-team playoff, that field goal would’ve knocked Notre Dame from a matchup with No. 3 Michigan State or No. 4 Oklahoma to a rematch with No. 1 Clemson. Victories over Notre Dame, Florida State, and most recently, tenth-ranked North Carolina, represent this team’s best work, and it will be interesting to see how the Tigers fare against the Big 12 champ.
Did we mention his Irish were No. 8 in the final playoff standings?
North Carolina, the preseason No. 1, jumped from ninth to third and received a pair of No. 1 votes.
Michigan State gets another shot at Alabama in the Cotton Bowl on December 31 as part of the College Football Playoff.
Saban was 34-21-1 in five seasons at Michigan State (1995-99) before going to LSU, then the National Football League and to Alabama in 2007.
One could understand if Iowa had bypassed the Sooners, since the Hawkeyes would have gone 13-0 compared to OU’s 11-1.
That’s going by the final rankings, though the format could be tweaked. “That’s what you want in the last game of the year”.
And to ring in the New Year, the Orange Bowl has the No. 1 college football team in the country.
Big Ten Champion third ranked Michigan State will take on number-2 Alabama in the College Football Playoff semifinals New Year’s Eve in the Cotton Bowl.
“We don’t look at seeding really”, Long said. And No. 11 TCU takes on an No. 15-ranked OR squad sitting just four spots below them. And there was no change in the top four.
Those qualities should serve them well against an Alabama team that is favored by nine points, but has rarely been challenged deep into the fourth quarter.
Stanford coach David Shaw agreed. “I think it’s going to be unavoidable….”
Michigan State is a team of destiny, and this hype video that was just released for the Spartans’ playoff run will make you feel the same way.
In addition, teams that didn’t even win conferences, such as Iowa and Ohio State, would have benefitted from not playing extra games. And it can’t go unnoticed that the last time Clemson played in Sun Life Stadium, they drove the Miami Hurricanes into the ground 58-0, leading to the firing of ‘Canes head coach Al Golden.
Michigan State’s Montae Nicholson (9) and Shane Jones (49) celebrate after Michigan State defeated Iowa 16-13 to win the Big Ten championship NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 5, 2015, in Indianapolis.
Another game on top of that?
The person said Muschamp could be introduced as early as Monday. Let’s enjoy a good thing while we have it. It was recovered by the Spartans, but they lost 30 yards on the play.
500 CLUB: Both teams have already scored 500 points this season.
Surprise, surprise. Alabama is your SEC champion. Here come the pleas for an eight-team playoff. Smart headed straight to Athens after the SEC championship game in Atlanta on Saturday night for a final interview before being named Mark Richt’s successor Sunday.
ASH TO RUTGERS: Before Ohio State defensive coordinator Chris Ash agreed to become the new head coach at Rutgers, his young son, Tanner, had two questions. “We’ve got exactly the opportunity that we’ve worked so hard for since last February”. They were 16th in both the preseason and first regular-season polls. “I was rooting for the Spartans after being there for 10 years myself and rooting for my former assistant Mark”.
Advertisement
“[Athletic director] Gene Smith has been tremendous to me and my family”.
