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Editor’s note: This article was originally published by USA TODAY Sports and has been republished in its entirety below.
If the current trend holds, the College Football Playoff debate will end Saturday with only a sliver of the controversy that had defined much of the postseason format’s first six seasons of existence.
No. 1 Alabama will meet No. 11 Florida (8 p.m. ET, CBS) for the SEC championship. No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Clemson will have a rematch (4 p.m. ET, ABC) to settle the ACC, with the possibility that both teams reach the national semifinals regardless of the result. No. 4 Ohio State will face off with No. 14 Northwestern (noon ET, Fox) in the Big Ten championship.
Should the playoff race unfold as predicted, leaving the same top four in place, or even take a slight detour and allow Texas A&M or another team a path into the semifinals, the only potential quarrel may arise from Ohio State’s candidacy despite playing only six games.
The 2020 season has seen an equally unique shift in the race for the Heisman Trophy, which in contrast to the playoff is more undefined and uncertain heading into the conclusion of the regular season than at any point in recent history.
With four players at the front of a jumbled pack of contenders — and with all four in action Saturday, including in a head-to-head matchup — the weekend’s largest source of drama stems from the pursuit of college football’s most prized individual award.
Who will win the Heisman?
NEXT: Alabama’s pair of Heisman contenders