College Football Playoff - #1 Alabama vs. #4 OU, #2 Clemson vs. #3 Notre Dame

[CDC84]

Any thoughts??? There has been some griping that a 2 loss Georgia team deserved to get in over Oklahoma. I wouldn't be one of those folks.

Despite going unbeaten AGAIN, the UCF Black Knights got a decent matchup in the Fiesta Bowl against LSU. In the words of a co-worker who is an ex-Alabama employee and SEC expert, the Tigers have a TERRIBLE offense. They can play defense, but their offense is not even top 25 quality. I know UCF lost their leader and starting QB McKenzie Milton, but their backup won at East Carolina and beat Memphis in the American title game. He's pretty darn good. Memphis is the hardest matchup for UCF in the American. LSU isn't exactly playing in their backyard, and UCF beat Auburn last year in front of a Auburn and SEC dominate crowd. I wouldn't be shocked if they beat LSU. On the other hand, after beating Auburn last year, LSU is not going to take UCF lightly.

But this whole silly thing with UCF is a constant reminder about how fortunate college basketball fans are. They get to see a real championship where teams like Loyola of Chicago aren't excluded.

[RenoZag]

http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/25437942/washington-state-cougars-athletic-director-decries-perception-pac-12-football

Beleaguered Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott was allotted the opportunity to advocate weekly to the selection committee, but his efforts proved fruitless.

"While we are disappointed that they were not selected for a New Year's Six bowl, we made the case for Washington State to the selection committee through the established communications protocols, and we were aligned in our approach with Washington State in this regard," the Pac-12 said in a statement. "At the same time, we know that the selection committee has difficult decisions to make, and we respect the committee and its members."

[Birddog]

I predict that Bama will run OU out of the stadium. Murray is really good but the O and D lines of Bama will dominate the Sooners. As for the Pac 12 and Scott, they are quickly becoming irrelevant. The Big 12 loves it because they are a tad more relevant as a result. The playoff really needs to be expanded to 8 teams. The conferences that get left out and their fans lose interest and that means less viewers. UCF is more deserving of a shot than the Pac 12 Champ IMO. UCF AD Danny White tweeted that the CFP "is not a playoff, it's an invitational" and he's right.

[kdaleb]

I call BS on the SEC getting 4 teams into BCS bowls, but ACC and PAC12 getting 1 each. That is a huge revenue disparity. I get that the SEC has brilliantly gamed the system but this is ridiculous.

[webspinnre]

I've got a hard time feeling sorry for the Pac-12 and ACC. Play better. I agree that 4 teams from the SEC seems excessive, but give me a break on the whining from the others.

[CDC84]

I predict that Bama will run OU out of the stadium. Murray is really good but the O and D lines of Bama will dominate the Sooners. As for the Pac 12 and Scott, they are quickly becoming irrelevant. The Big 12 loves it because they are a tad more relevant as a result. The playoff really needs to be expanded to 8 teams. The conferences that get left out and their fans lose interest and that means less viewers. UCF is more deserving of a shot than the Pac 12 Champ IMO. UCF AD Danny White tweeted that the CFP "is not a playoff, it's an invitational" and he's right.

Helton is in over his head at USC, but he does one thing well: he, his staff and his players do not do anything to embarrass the program off the field. However, I don't know how long the Trojan boosters are going to put up with it. USC is still the kind of place where if they get the right coach, they will be competing for national titles. The location is perfect, the state and adjacent states are swimming in talent, the alumni are legendary and there is still all that history.

The thing that I continue to find fascinating about this whole UCF thing is that the ESPN analysts treat them as if they are some sort of "little guy" school, and yet they are second largest public university in the United States of America! 67,000+ students! The only reason that program isn't in a BCS league is that it didn't come into being until 1963.

Some ESPN college football "analyst" said that he didn't think UCF has the offensive and defensive line play to compete in the ACC. Pitt competed in the ACC championship game against #2 Clemson. Clemson beat Pitt by 32 points.
UCF beat Pitt by 31 points. Give me a break.

[CDC84]

Some analyst on ESPN mentioned last night, "I have always said that as good as UCF is, I don't feel they have the offensive and defensive line play to compete in the SEC, ACC and Pac 12."

First of all, UCF beat an Auburn team in Atlanta last January that beat Alabama.

Secondly, this analyst seemed to be coming from the perspective that the SEC, ACC and Pac 12 only consist of teams like Alabama, Georgia and Clemson. There seems to be this illusion that these leagues are only filled with powerhouse teams. There are a lot of mediocre and crummy teams in the Pac 12 and ACC. Does he seriously believe that UCF cannot compete against the likes of North Carolina State, Boston College and Wake Forest?? One of the most unfortunate things UCF has gone thru the past 2 seasons is having two games cancelled due to weather against ACC teams. Despite this, UCF did play an ACC team this season, Pitt, and they absolutely destroyed them. A Pitt team that nearly beat Notre Dame, who is in the college football playoff this year.

There seems to be an unwillingness on the part of the big money network analysts to look at the facts. They just can't believe that a team like UCF can be as good as they are. Again, it all makes sense. UCF is the second largest public university in America, and it is located in one of three best recruiting states for football talent that exists. The three big schools in state, Miami, Florida State and Florida, are all a shadow of their former selves. It's allowed UCF to nail some recruits that they couldn't nail ten years ago. This is a university that would be in a BCS league if it weren't so new as a university.

[CDC84]

I am not surprised by tonight's events. I had a feeling Clemson might run away with it. I think the SEC wasn't all that great this year, and it was proven by its collective bowl performance. It inflated Alabama and made them look better than they are.

Saban has got to stop scheduling these ridiculous non-conference games. Next year he's playing Duke in his annual "big time" non-con game on a neutral field. He did agree to schedule home and homes with Oklahoma and Notre Dame, but he will be retired by the time the games get played.

For every time they mentioned UCF's loss of their star QB, ESPN analysts mentioned LSU's missing defensive players 10x more. There is too much snobbery in college football. UCF was bound to lose a game at some point. The analysts acted like LSU beat them by 50. Anyone who doesn't think that UCF can't compete in the ACC is crazy. Look at what they have done to Pitt? You see, the ACC doesn't just consist of Clemson. It consists of many football teams who aren't as good as some of the teams in American. Wake Forest? Pitt? North Carolina State? Please.

[sittingon50]

Sure enjoyed that butt-kickin'.

[webspinnre]

I'm not surprised by Clemson winning, but I'm definitely surprised by the margin.

[seacatfan]

I am not surprised by tonight's events. I had a feeling Clemson might run away with it. I think the SEC wasn't all that great this year, and it was proven by its collective bowl performance. It inflated Alabama and made them look better than they are.

This drives me NUTS. Every year it seems like almost everyone just automatically assumes the SEC is vastly superior to everybody else. Since they mostly play a bunch of patsies in non-conference, it's not really based on anything...other than assumptions. Every year. It's a giant house of cards. Glad to see some SEC teams get whupped in bowls/playoffs this year. Won't stop the same assumptions from being made all over again next year. Habits die hard.