"Twelve years into the College Football Playoff, the committee may have been tasked with its toughest decision yet. On one hand, there's Alabama, the bluest of blue bloods, a team that played the sixth-toughest schedule in the country, with seven wins over FPI top-40 opponents, and whose final loss -- the one that put the Tide squarely on the bubble -- came in the SEC championship game, while others like Miami and Notre Dame sat at home."
"On the other hand, there's Notre Dame, the most storied program in the sport's history with a legion of fans from coast to coast. The Irish are playing exceptional football, winning 10 straight all by double digits, and their lone losses, way back in early September, came to two other top-tier teams by a combined four points."
"Then on the metaphorical third hand is Miami, a team that began the season with fireworks, sagged in the middle, then responded to its No. 18 placement in the first set of rankings by reeling off four straight wins by an average of 27 points per game. Oh, and Miami holds a head-to-head win over Notre Dame, albeit one that came in the first week of the season and that the committee may or may not consider from week to week."
The College Football Playoff selection is unusually fraught this season as multiple teams present strong yet different resumes. Alabama played the sixth-toughest schedule, earned seven wins over FPI top-40 opponents and lost its final game in the SEC championship. Notre Dame has won 10 straight games by double digits, with early losses by a combined four points. Miami began with fireworks, slumped, then answered a No. 18 ranking with four straight wins by an average of 27 points and owns a head-to-head victory over Notre Dame. Other contenders and past controversial committee decisions add complexity to the final choice.
Read at ESPN.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]