One man’s opinion on the College Playoff field

Published 9:27 am Tuesday, December 1, 2015

The College Football Playoff committee will make its final decision Sunday regarding which four teams made the cut and which teams will be listening to Adele’s “Hello” on repeat until next season.

I hope this year the committee does a better job of correctly choosing the final four, as I’m still not convinced Ohio State should’ve went in over TCU or Baylor last year. But I digress.

I’m still not a fan of the committee and having a playoff system, but if the power were yielded to me to have a vote for the four teams, I would rank them as such:

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No. 1: Clemson. I would’ve never thought I’d see the day Clemson University would potentially play for a national championship. Clemson always seemed to get in its own way from being a great program. All season I’ve waited for the Tigers to “Clemson” themselves, meaning doing something to mess up whatever success they’ve accumulated. If it didn’t come in the game against South Carolina, then I know the “Clemson curse” doesn’t apply to this team.

No. 2: Alabama. It’s hard to overlook the success of the Crimson Tide. The loss to Ole Miss is long in the rearview. The defense has been hard to run against and quarterback Jake Coker has become more comfortable in the system. Heisman hopeful Derrick Henry has broken records all season. Coach Nick Saban has turned Alabama into a dynasty.

No. 3: Oklahoma. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a Saturday night built for a man cave, which included Oklahoma beating Baylor. After narrowly escaping TCU 30-29, they’ve boomed their way to the Big XII title by whooping Oklahoma State 58-23. The Sooners are searching for their first championship since 2000, but could have a 2014 Sugar Bowl rematch on their hands against Alabama.

No. 4: Winner of the Big 10 Championship. Michigan State caught my eye early in the season against Oregon, and even more with how well they ran the ball against Ohio State. Despite a loss to Nebraska on a bad officiating call, they’ve proven to be a dominant team. Iowa has been given the side-eye all season but if it wins the conference championship against the Spartans and remains undefeated, it will have earned the right to the fourth seed and to play Clemson.

Alex Swatson is a sports writer. He can be reached at alex.swatson@vicksburgpost.com