OT: D1

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Because IUP plays in what is a G5 conference in D2. We're the MAC of D2.

D1 at least isn't playing its national title game in the E8. So, it has that going for it (unlike D2).

[IUPNation]

Because IUP plays in what is a G5 conference in D2. We're the MAC of D2.

But the Pee Sack is the SEC of Region 1!

[Chuck Norris]

I think you can say the same thing for Indiana regarding their loss to Ohio State. But they are squarely in, and SMU has to avoid losing a conference championship game to make the field. Those two things make no sense to me. If your current resume is good enough through an entire regular season to be in playoff position, why do you risk losing that spot by playing an extra game, when a team with a lesser resume who is not playing a conference championship is in without a shadow of a doubt? That's been my entire argument with this whole system from the beginning.

I agree about Indiana have said as much. I hope SMU gets in win or lose. Miami screwed the ACC by stumbling to the finish. If they were 12-0 or 11-1 and playing SMU tomorrow, both teams probably make it, unless one obliterated the other.

The Big 12 somewhat cannabalizing itself and having its top teams pretty much come from out of nowhere got us here too. A lot of things broke right right for Alabama to re-enter the conversation.

[IUP24]

I agree about Indiana have said as much. I hope SMU gets in win or lose. Miami screwed the ACC by stumbling to the finish. If they were 12-0 or 11-1 and playing SMU tomorrow, both teams probably make it, unless one obliterated the other.

The Big 12 somewhat cannabalizing itself and having its top teams pretty much come from out of nowhere got us here too. A lot of things broke right right for Alabama to re-enter the conversation.

I agree. It's hard for me to justify much of any of this outside of name recognition and conference biases that exist within the committee. Miami gets eyeballs just like Alabama and the others. Good wins are fine, but you can't ignore losses either. That's my entire issue with some of this. An SEC team loses, it's excused because "it just means more." There are people all through this thread that support and justify that as being logical to them.

Kentucky is a bad team. They beat Ole Miss in Oxford. Why are they even in the conversation? Oklahoma is terrible. They throttled Alabama. At some point the losses have to matter too.

As I've pointed out, Miami's resume feels and looks a lot like Penn State. They got some fortunate breaks in games. They won some games late. They didn't look all that imposing or consistently elite week in and week out. That's not to discount either team. But I feel that Miami's losses to GT and Syracuse are 'better' than Ole Miss losing to Kentucky at home, or Alabama losing to Oklahoma. Not everyone agrees, and that's okay. But at some point, the losses have to matter too.

[IUP24]

D1 at least isn't playing its national title game in the E8. So, it has that going for it (unlike D2).

I'm pretty sure that almost every sport has unbalanced seeding in their playoff formats. The year the Penguins won the Stanley Cup in 2017, three of the NHL's top four teams based on points were in the Metro division and only one remained to reach the conference final (Penguins ousted Columbus and Washington). Baseball has tried to adjust their playoff format to avoid one game ending a season, but that doesn't necessarily eliminate the best 2 teams in baseball meeting long before the World Series. Buffalo and KC have been the best 2 teams in football the last number of years. You can easily argue that the Super Bowl was played in the Divisional Round the last 2 seasons.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Rich Rod is going to interview for the WVU job.

[Fightingscot82]

Rich Rod is going to interview for the WVU job.

Why not. Worked well for Schiano 2: The Search for More Money

[IUPNation]

Rich Rod is going to interview for the WVU job.

When you hire retreads you are admitting you are a second tier program.

[IUPNation]

It’s looking he’ll be James Elevenandtwo the way it’s going..he pregame interview sounded like we are happy to be here. Not very reassuring…

[IUPbigINDIANS]

It’s looking he’ll be James Elevenandtwo the way it’s going..he pregame interview sounded like we are happy to be here. Not very reassuring…

James and the bright lights don't match

[iupgroundhog]

James and the bright lights don't match

It's one wild game.

[Chuck Norris]

They’d better still put SMU in.

[EyeoftheHawk]

This is all about SMU and Alabama. Otherwise the field is set. Georgia beating Texas wasn’t a surprise. A close game between #1 and #3 teams wasn’t a surprise so I don’t expect any changes there in terms of seeding. My concern for SMU is it seems like they were placed where they were with the idea that if they lose, Alabama will slip in without even playing. I have a real problem with that if it happens as I’m sure a bunch of others would as well. SMU showed a lot of character coming back like they did and even with the loss, I think their resume is still better than Alabama’s.

[Chuck Norris]

Good on Sean McDonough for advocating for SMU throughout the night. I’m sure his bosses and a number of his colleagues didn’t like it. The result of that game was the exact scenario needed to keep Alabama out. Hopefully the committee has the stones to do it.

Penn State gave it a heck of a shot. James Franklin takes grief for not winning the big games and it’s justified, but I think Drew Allar is holding this particular PSU team back from being elite moreso than Franklin. He’s just not accurate and consistent enough to justify his five star hype.

[IUP24]

Wild theory and thought that I am convincing myself may actually happen…

I think Indiana is going to be the odd man out.

There is massive campaigning happening across college football which includes many coaches and the sports media on SMU’s behalf. Every person is saying the same general message, and that is that they should not be punished for losing in a conference championship game. If SMU gets left out, coaches will riot and many will refuse to play conference championship games moving forward. Considering the money the NCAA has tied up in conference championship weekend, they will do everything they can to protect that cash cow. That would be a dangerous precedent to set if they boot a team because they played in a conference title game.

The committee wants Alabama in the playoff for a lot of external reasons. And they’ll get in. SMU and Indiana would be a wash. Neither are a ratings draw. Neither are blue bloods. And in terms of the resume arguments, SMU and Indiana are the only two ever thoroughly discussed by the masses. Because neither have name recognition, they are the ones who are scrutinized.

It is easier to try to spin how Alabama, who entered the week ranked 11 in the CFP rankings, leapfrogged Indiana while they were both idle than it would be to explain how a team ranked 8th at 11-1 (ranked ahead of both IU and Bama) dropped out because they lost their conference championship game. I would be interested to see how they spun that after the field was set, but I’m talking myself into thinking it could happen. Indiana was beaten one team with a winning record. It will be easy for them to say, “Alabama’s full body of work was better against some stiffer competition.”

Anyways, I bet 25 bucks at +6000 last night that Bama wins the national championship.