Michigan was done no favors with brutal Alabama draw in CFP
The Crimson Tide are led by a guy named Nick Saban, who you may have heard of. He has only won seven national championships and eleven SEC titles, but it is arguable that after how poorly his team started the season, he has done his best work this season. Alabama just ended Georgia’s 29-game winning streak on Saturday in the SEC championship game, ending the Bulldogs’ hopes of a historic three-peat. Jalen Milroe is playing as well as any quarterback in the nation. The defense held Georgia to a season-low-tying 24 points.
After winning four games by a margin of six points or less and trailing or drawing even at halftime in six other contests, Alabama has started to look like a team bound for greatness. Last weekend, in the Iron Bowl, it took a spectacular 31-yard touchdown pass from Ben Milroe to Isaiah Bond with 32 seconds remaining to overcome six-losing Auburn. Then, on Saturday, it outperformed Georgia, a startling display that demonstrated the newfound confidence the Crimson Tide have.
All of that Michigan will have to contend with on January 1 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. It was rightfully awarded the top seed after going undefeated, defeating bitter rival Ohio State, and winning the Big Ten championship for the third time in a row. But Alabama was declared the last playoff team over Florida State after Pac-12 champion Washington was unveiled at No. 2 and Texas was seeded third.
It was all captured on video from the Michigan watch party. A faint clap or two, a gasp, and mostly silence were heard. The Wolverines appear to realize that the committee did them no favors. It would have been difficult to beat Florida State offensively after star quarterback Jordan Travis suffered a serious leg injury on November 18.
It’s uncannily similar to Georgia’s matchup against Ohio State, possibly the best team in the playoffs, at No. 1 last year. In order to advance, the Bulldogs had to come back from a 14-point deficit early in the fourth quarter. Alabama will probably put Michigan through a similar ordeal.This isn’t always an indictment of the committee. I can see why Texas was seeded ahead of the Crimson Time; after all, they defeated Alabama 10 points to the none in Tuscaloosa back in early September. But as the best team, the top seed should be rewarded. That was not the case here. Michigan, if anything, had the worst draw—certainly not as advantageous as Washington, which will play Texas in
College football dominated this weekend, especially from Friday night’s kickoff of the Oregon-Washington Pac-12 championship game until Sunday’s announcement of the playoff pairings. Social media was dominated by discussions about it. NFL pregame shows talked about it as well. It overshadowed a Saturday night of college basketball filled with upsets.
