College Football playoff madness

The four-team College Football Playoff (CFP) field was announced Sunday—and it did not go over well.

Undefeated Florida State was excluded from the bracket by the selection committee in favor of one-loss SEC champion Alabama. That’s despite the Seminoles ranking ahead of the Crimson Tide for the majority of the season, including last weekend, and winning their conference championship.?

the debate has become whether the committee got it right or not

With the NCAA set to turn to a 12-team field next season, the debate has become whether the committee got it right or not in its final year picking just four teams. While there is no objective answer on the matter, the public seems to believe they did not. 

The nomination goes to…

Four teams make the CFP to compete in a mini single-elimination-style bracket.

While schools such as Michigan and Washington were practically guaranteed spots in the CFP, and Texas was the presumptive third team, the fourth spot was up for grabs. 

Florida State, Alabama, Georgia, and Ohio State were all suitors for the fourth seed. Here are a few major talking points for each school:

Florida State

• 13-0 ACC Champion, 2-0 against top 15 teams
• Ranked fourth heading into championship weekend
• Starting QB Jordan Travis was lost for the season a couple of weeks ago

Alabama

• 12-1 SEC champion, beat back-to-back national champion Georgia in SEC Championship Game
• Lost at home to Texas in Week 2
• 3-1 against top 15 teams, 4-1 against top 25 teams

Georgia

• 12-1, only loss to Alabama in SEC Championship Game
• Ranked first for the majority of the year
• Defending back-to-back national champions

Ohio State

• 11-1, only loss to Michigan in season finale
• Beat No. 7 Penn State 
• 1-1 against top 25 teams

Reaching a decision

The selection committee is supposed to find the four best teams to compete in the CFP. However, the four best teams have often turned into the four most deserving teams, and with good reason. 

Last year, TCU went 12-1 with its only loss coming in the Big 12 Championship Game. Despite preseason rankings putting them behind many other teams in their own conference, they vindicated a selection to the CFP with a semifinal win against No. 2 Michigan, 51-45.

However, they were annihilated in the national championship by Georgia, 65-7.

In 2021, 13-0 Cincinnati even made it to the CFP behind NFL players Sauce Gardner and Desmond Ridder, though they lost to No. 1 Alabama, 27-6 in the semifinal.

This is the first time that an undefeated Power Five conference champion will miss out on the CFP. For many, the question is only: “What more could they have done?”

The injury to Travis, once a Heisman candidate, played a key part in the decision to leave the Seminoles out of the bracket, as explained by committee chair Boo Corrigan.

Backup Tate Rodemaker took over during a game against North Alabama, when Travis was injured, and played most of a win over Florida before he, too, was injured. Third-string Brock Glenn gained only 49 total yards during the team’s win in the ACC Championship Game against Louisville.??

The Seminoles, in two full games without Travis, averaged 20 points. That’s less than the 40.1 they averaged with him. 

Travis said after the decision that he wished the team had a greater opportunity to showcase its ability even without him in the lineup.

College Football Playoff betting odds

According to betting odds provided by FanDuel, Alabama, who was included in place of FSU, is the second most-likely team to win the CFP. Michigan is first, and Texas and Washington round out the field.

CFP betting odds:

• Michigan (+170)
• Alabama (+210)
• Texas (+260)
• Washington (+800)

Alabama is a 1.5-point underdog against Michigan in their New Year’s Day matchup. Crimson Tide QB Jalen Milroe has played out of his mind recently, helping lead Bama’s resurgence ever since the Texas loss.

Speaking of Texas, they’re 4.5-point favorites over Washington in the late game. The Huskies won outright as 9.5-point dogs against Oregon last weekend and have not been in the CFP since 2016 when they lost to Alabama in the semifinal.

The most likely exacta is Michigan defeating Texas in the championship game (+350). After that is Alabama beating Texas (+420), Michigan beating Washington (+500), and Texas beating Michigan (+550).