All of the debates are over and the College Football Playoff selection committee has spoken. The College Football Playoff field has been officially locked in and it will have a bit of a Big Ten flavor once again.
Big Ten champion Michigan took the top spot in the College Football Playoff rankings, and thus the top seed in the playoff.
Washington, who will be joining the Big Ten in 2024, took the no. 2 seed after completing a 13-0 record with the Pac-12 championship on Friday night. Washington will face no. 3 Texas (12-1), the champions of the Big 12.
The fourth and final spot came down to the wire. SEC champion Alabama, who went 12-1 in the 2023 season, grabbed the fourth spot, edging just ahead of no. 5 Florida State. The Seminoles went 13-0 this season and held a top four spot the entire season once the playoff rankings started coming out. But an injury at the quarterback position came into play at the worst possible time.
The first two teams out of the College Football Playoff were no. 5 Florida State and no. 6 Georgia. Georgia had won the past two national championships but a loss to Alabama knocked the Bulldogs out of the running. The big stunner is Florida State being passed over despite winning every game on its schedule.
Michigan will face Alabama in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, 2024. Washington will take on Texas in the Sugar Bowl on the same date.
Now the waiting game for the rest of the New Years Six bowl lineup is underway.
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