No. 8 Alabama’s 27-24 win over No. 1 Georgia in Atlanta for the 2023 SEC Championship has the nation talking about how this impacts the College Football Playoffs. Does the Crimson Tide deserve to be in the top four?
Questions will be answered at noon ET when the College Football Playoff Committee reveals its final rankings, setting the stage for the two semifinal matchups and the eventual national championship.
Michigan and Washington are certainly in as the top two teams. However, no one is quite sure what to do with Alabama (12-1, SEC Champions), Texas (12-1 Big 12 Champions) and Florida State (13-0, ACC Champions). Only two of those three can make it. This means one team will be have their strong season abruptly ended.
Texas owns the head-to-head over Alabama, but the Longhorns lost to Oklahoma, and Florida State finished the season undefeated, but their best win was Alabama’s third-best win on the season. This is as tricky as it can get for the committee.
ESPN college football expert Heather Dinich put together her final College Football Playoff rankings projections (subscription required) and the top four are certainly some of the strongest teams in the nation, but one program will inevitably disappointed.
- Michigan
- Washington
- Texas
- Alabama
- Georgia
- Florida State
This projection puts Alabama in the playoffs and give the Tide an opportunity to compete for a national championship.
“The Crimson Tide now own the best win of the season after defeating No. 1 Georgia to win the SEC title,” writes Dinich. “It’s likely the committee keeps them behind Texas, though, because of the Week 2 loss to the Longhorns. Alabama should keep alive the SEC’s streak of having a team in the CFP every season since it started 10 seasons ago.”
The Seminoles would be upset, which is understandable. However, any team left out of the playoffs will be upset, as five of the aforementioned teams have legitimate arguments to be in the playoffs.
Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama football and the College Football Playoff race.
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