Well, the Committee did what I thought they would…
So, SMU made it in over Alabama, Ole Miss, and South Carolina. They have a much worse resume, but they have a better record and competed for a conference championship without any terrible losses.
I’m not really that mad about SMU making it over those SEC teams. I think SMU would have a chance to beat those teams on any given Saturday, and SMU avoided any big collapses during the season (Bama vs Vandy and OU, Ole Miss vs Kentucky, South Carolina vs Ole Miss).
My argument for the SEC teams is their quality wins. Alabama has wins over Georgia, Missouri, and South Carolina, the Mizzou win being 34-0. Ole Miss beat Georgia by 18, South Carolina by 24, and they won their only game against an ACC team (Wake Forest) by 34. South Carolina beat Texas A&M by 24, beat Missouri, and won on the road at Clemson, the team that just beat SMU. SMU’s best win is against Louisville, and they have some okay wins against TCU and Duke. Oh, and SMU lost their only two games against Top 25 opponents (BYU and Clemson). All that being said, it is what it is, SMU showed that they are more consistent, I guess.
So, I’m not really angry about SMU making it in, because they have some decent justification. What I am angry about, is the format of the bracket itself.
First of all, the auto-byes. Penn State and Texas have easier paths to the championship than Oregon and Georgia… WHAT!? This is the most asinine way to seed a playoff. Just seed the teams according to rank. Oregon should have the easiest paths to the championship. They earned it by going undefeated and being the no. 1 team for a better part of the season, but instead Penn State is awarded for losing to Oregon by getting SMU and Boise State in the 1st two rounds, while Oregon gets the bye, but must play against the winner of Ohio State vs Tennessee. Teams should be rewarded for being ranked high, sounds like common sense to me.
Then there’s the auto bids. I know they are trying to guarantee that all of these conferences are being represented, but if you look back on the history of CFP rankings, almost every year there are 5 conferences represented in the top 12. It is ridiculous that Alabama can be ranked no. 11 (agree with it or not) and not be in a 12 team playoff while no. 16 Clemson gets to make it. They should just get rid of conference championships and put the top 12 teams in the playoffs because Alabama would completely spay and neuter Clemson if they got the chance.
Evidence for no auto-bids
2014
| Rank | Team | Record | Conference |
| 1 | Alabama | 12-1 | SEC |
| 2 | Oregon | 12-1 | Pac 12 |
| 3 | Florida State | 13-0 | ACC |
| 4 | Ohio State | 12-1 | Big Ten |
| 5 | Baylor | 11-1 | Big 12 |
| 6 | TCU | 11-1 | Big 12 |
| 7 | Mississippi State | 10-2 | SEC |
| 8 | Michigan State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 9 | Ole Miss | 9-3 | SEC |
| 10 | Arizona | 10-3 | Pac 12 |
| 11 | Kansas State | 9-3 | Big 12 |
| 12 | Georgia Tech | 10-3 | ACC |
2015
| 1 | Clemson | 13-0 | ACC |
| 2 | Alabama | 12-1 | SEC |
| 3 | Michigan State | 12-1 | Big Ten |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 11-1 | Big 12 |
| 5 | Iowa | 12-1 | Big Ten |
| 6 | Stanford | 11-2 | Pac 12 |
| 7 | Ohio State | 11-1 | Big Ten |
| 8 | Notre Dame | 10-2 | Independent |
| 9 | Florida State | 10-2 | ACC |
| 10 | North Carolina | 11-2 | ACC |
| 11 | TCU | 10-2 | Big 12 |
| 12 | Ole Miss | 9-3 | SEC |
2016
| 1 | Alabama | 13-0 | SEC |
| 2 | Clemson | 12-1 | ACC |
| 3 | Ohio State | 11-1 | Big Ten |
| 4 | Washington | 12-1 | Pac 12 |
| 5 | Penn State | 11-2 | Big Ten |
| 6 | Michigan | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 7 | Oklahoma | 10-2 | Big 12 |
| 8 | Wisconsin | 10-3 | Big Ten |
| 9 | USC | 9-3 | Pac 12 |
| 10 | Colorado | 10-3 | Pac 12 |
| 11 | Florida State | 9-3 | ACC |
| 12 | Oklahoma State | 9-3 | Big 12 |
2017
| 1 | Clemson | 12-1 | ACC |
| 2 | Oklahoma | 12-1 | Big 12 |
| 3 | Georgia | 12-1 | SEC |
| 4 | Alabama | 11-1 | SEC |
| 5 | Ohio State | 11-2 | Big Ten |
| 6 | Wisconsin | 12-1 | Big Ten |
| 7 | Auburn | 10-3 | SEC |
| 8 | USC | 11-2 | Pac 12 |
| 9 | Penn State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 10 | Miami | 10-2 | ACC |
| 11 | Washington | 10-2 | Pac 12 |
| 12 | UCF | 12-0 | American |
2018
| 1 | Alabama | 13-0 | SEC |
| 2 | Clemson | 13-0 | ACC |
| 3 | Notre Dame | 12-0 | Independent |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 12-1 | Big 12 |
| 5 | Georgia | 11-2 | SEC |
| 6 | Ohio State | 12-1 | Big Ten |
| 7 | Michigan | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 8 | UCF | 12-0 | American |
| 9 | Washington | 10-3 | Pac 12 |
| 10 | Florida | 9-3 | SEC |
| 11 | LSU | 9-3 | SEC |
| 12 | Penn State | 9-3 | Big Ten |
2019
| 1 | LSU | 13-0 | SEC |
| 2 | Ohio State | 13-0 | Big Ten |
| 3 | Clemson | 13-0 | ACC |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 12-1 | Big 12 |
| 5 | Georgia | 11-2 | SEC |
| 6 | Oregon | 11-2 | Pac 12 |
| 7 | Baylor | 11-2 | Big 12 |
| 8 | Wisconsin | 10-3 | Big Ten |
| 9 | Florida | 10-2 | SEC |
| 10 | Penn State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 11 | Utah | 11-2 | Pac 12 |
| 12 | Auburn | 9-3 | SEC |
2020
| 1 | Alabama | 10-0 | SEC |
| 2 | Notre Dame | 10-0 | ACC |
| 3 | Clemson | 9-1 | ACC |
| 4 | Ohio State | 5-0 | Big Ten |
| 5 | Texas A&M | 7-1 | SEC |
| 6 | Iowa State | 8-2 | Big 12 |
| 7 | Florida | 8-2 | SEC |
| 8 | Georgia | 7-2 | SEC |
| 9 | Cincinnati | 8-0 | American |
| 10 | Oklahoma | 7-2 | Big 12 |
| 11 | Indiana | 6-1 | Big Ten |
| 12 | Coastal Carolina | 11-0 | Sun Belt |
2021
| 1 | Alabama | 12-1 | SEC |
| 2 | Michigan | 12-1 | Big Ten |
| 3 | Georgia | 12-1 | SEC |
| 4 | Cincinnati | 13-0 | American |
| 5 | Notre Dame | 11-1 | Independent |
| 6 | Ohio State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 7 | Baylor | 11-1 | Big 12 |
| 8 | Ole Miss | 10-2 | SEC |
| 9 | Oklahoma State | 11-2 | Big 12 |
| 10 | Michigan State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 11 | Utah | 10-3 | Pac 12 |
| 12 | Pittsburgh | 11-2 | ACC |
2022
| 1 | Georgia | 13-0 | SEC |
| 2 | Michigan | 13-0 | Big Ten |
| 3 | TCU | 12-1 | Big 12 |
| 4 | Ohio State | 11-1 | Big Ten |
| 5 | Alabama | 10-2 | SEC |
| 6 | Tennessee | 10-2 | SEC |
| 7 | Clemson | 11-2 | ACC |
| 8 | Utah | 10-3 | Pac 12 |
| 9 | Kansas State | 10-3 | Big 12 |
| 10 | USC | 11-2 | Pac 12 |
| 11 | Penn State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 12 | Washington | 10-2 | Pac 12 |
2023
| 1 | Michigan | 13-0 | Big Ten |
| 2 | Washington | 13-0 | Pac 12 |
| 3 | Texas | 12-1 | Big 12 |
| 4 | Alabama | 12-1 | SEC |
| 5 | Florida State | 13-0 | ACC |
| 6 | Georgia | 12-1 | SEC |
| 7 | Ohio State | 11-1 | Big Ten |
| 8 | Oregon | 11-2 | Pac 12 |
| 9 | Missouri | 10-2 | SEC |
| 10 | Penn State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 11 | Ole Miss | 10-2 | SEC |
| 12 | Oklahoma | 10-2 | Big 12 |
2024
| 1 | Oregon | 13-0 | Big Ten |
| 2 | Georgia | 11-2 | SEC |
| 3 | Texas | 11-2 | SEC |
| 4 | Penn State | 11-2 | Big Ten |
| 5 | Notre Dame | 11-1 | Independent |
| 6 | Ohio State | 10-2 | Big Ten |
| 7 | Tennessee | 10-2 | SEC |
| 8 | Indiana | 11-1 | Big Ten |
| 9 | Boise State | 12-1 | Mountain West |
| 10 | SMU | 11-2 | ACC |
| 11 | Alabama | 9-3 | SEC |
| 12 | Arizona State | 11-2 | Big 12 |
Well, the data speaks for itself. Every single season 5+ conferences would be represented. Even in 2020 when the Pac 12 didn’t make it, there were multiple G5 conferences represented to bring the total number to 6, and this year as the Pac 12 doesn’t even exist anymore, a Mountain West team made it to bring the number of conferences represented to 5. Auto bids are stupid, and conference championships should be abolished.
JacobErwin.com 