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By early Saturday night, Cincinnati was celebrating, Kirby Smart was bending the knee to former boss Nick Saban and the College Football Playoff committee was exhaling.
A wild Saturday that featured two major upsets should make Sunday’s announcement easy. Alabama’s commanding 41-24 defeat of undefeated and top-ranked Georgia in the SEC championship game and fifth-ranked Oklahoma State’s last-second loss to ninth-ranked Baylor in the Big 12 final cleared up any confusion.
The question isn’t who gets in — Alabama, Georgia, Michigan and Cincinnati should be locks — but where the four teams will be placed. It seems likely the third-ranked Crimson Tide — courtesy of their win over Georgia — will leapfrog Michigan to be No. 1. Alabama should be followed by Georgia and Michigan (either of which could be No. 2), and then Cincinnati. That would pave the way for a rematch of the SEC championship game in the national title game, which would also be a repeat of the 2017 final, which was won by Alabama in overtime.
An argument can be made that Michigan deserves to be ranked ahead of Georgia as a nod to its victory last week over seventh-ranked Ohio State. The Bulldogs’ best win is over No. 20 Clemson, but their season-long dominance (they entered Saturday having outscored the opposition 488-83) and three wins over top-25 teams may give them the edge.
But, really, there is no drama this year after criticism mounted regarding the committee’s weekly rankings and its potential hesitancy in selecting an undefeated Group of Five school. By Saturday night, the only mystery involved Michigan, which obliterated Iowa, 42-3, to book its first trip to the playoff. Had the Wolverines slipped up, it would have opened the door for Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish lack a win over a team in the top 25, which has kept them on the outside by a wide margin.
Perhaps the biggest question of the day is where Georgia will go from here, after its aura of invincibility was shattered by SEC rival Alabama. The Crimson Tide and Heisman Trophy favorite Bryce Young rolled up 537 yards of offense against a defense that had looked immortal before this meeting. Will Smart, who fell to 0-4 against his mentor Saban, now go to quarterback JT Daniels after Stetson Bennett coughed up two killer interceptions and was incapable of rallying the Bulldogs? Smart didn’t say he was considering such a move after the loss, but that could obviously change in the weeks ahead.
Several other intriguing storylines that will dominate Sunday: the inclusion of underdog Cincinnati, the presence of Jim Harbaugh and Michigan for the first time and Alabama’s sudden resurgence as the favorite. Who makes it into the CFP, though, should not be in doubt.
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