I think regardless of what happens Saturday, Georgia is in, period! I also think Michigan is in, unless they lose their championship game by 60! When you manhandle a team like Ohio State on its own field, that speaks loudly to the entire country. I don't Alabama is making it in front of Ohio State, simply because Alabama has twice as many losses and they could easily be 8-4, instead of 10-2. If you look at the whole picture, Alabama is simply not the juggernaut they have been in the past.
I don't see a path for Bama to get in other than a rash of upsets Saturday. As @CagedTiger said, UGA is already in, and Michigan only misses out with an ugly loss. TCU and USC are win and in. If either loses, Ohio State re-enters the conversation. TCU and USC would both have to lose ugly for Bama to even get into the discussion.
I just can’t see a 1-loss TCU getting in over BAMA. I mean, I can, because it is BAMA and Nick, but it clearly shouldn’t be. TCU went through their Big-12 schedule undefeated. There essentially is no reason for this CCG. A 1-loss TCU that plays in their CCG and loses should not suffer the penalty of being replaced by a 2-loss BAMA who didn’t win their division, didn’t play in their CCG, and gets rewarded by sitting at home with their 2-losses. Yeah, I know we have kinda seen this shit before, but it defies logic. I see the top 3 being locked in (UGA, UM, TCU) no matter what happens Saturday (I don’t see 50 point losses by any of them). I think the playoff is coming down to 4/5 USC/tOSU. All USC has to do is win and they are in. If they lose, its tOSU. So, your CFP field will likely be in this order: 1. UGA 2. UM 3. TCU 4. USC (alt tOSU if USC shits the bed). If there are losses in the top 3, the order could change, but I am sticking with them as in.
To me, it defeats the purpose of the playoff. If you’re going to allow the 3rd place team within a division, just off of name alone, why even have a rankings system and a playoff system? I know that strength of schedule is important, but you don’t get to not win and go to the big game. If we’d beaten A&M and then beaten UGA in the conference championship, we’d be lucky to overtake a 0 loss or 1 loss team. But that’s by winning the conference, not by placing 3rd
Conference champions don’t get an auto bid, and shouldn’t in a 4 team playoff. In an 8-12 team, yes (with limits like top 10/25/etc).
I get that, but NOT being conference champions, and being not even second place in said conference, shouldn’t get a participation trophy, either.
