From the sidelines
Marty Gordon
The Final Four teams for the College Football Playoffs were unveiled Sunday and left many fans and college leaders scratching their heads. #1 Michigan will play #4 Alabama, and #2 Washington will face #3 Texas. It is the inclusion of 11-1 Bama from the Southeastern Conference that has us all wondering what the CFP committee was thinking when they made those decisions.
The playoff was set up with conference champions in mind, but Bama, who won the SEC title, did lose to Texas earlier this year. Florida State out of the ACC finished undefeated and beat Louisville in the conference championship. Yet, they were left out of the final four. Something is just not right.
Florida State head coach Mike Norvell summed it perfectly to this decision.
“I am disgusted and infuriated with the committee’s decision to have what was earned on the field taken away because a small group of people decided they knew better than the results of the games.
“What is the point of playing games? Do you tell players it is okay to quit if someone goes down? Do you not play a senior on Senior Day for fear of injury? Where is the motivation to schedule challenging non-conference games? We are not only an undefeated P5 conference champion, but we also played two P5 non-conference games away from home and won both of them. I don’t understand how we are supposed to think this is an acceptable way to evaluate a team.”
Florida State athletics director Michael Alford also ripped the College Football Playoff Committee.
“The 2023 Florida State Seminoles are the epitome of a total TEAM. To eliminate them from a chance to compete for a national championship is an unwarranted injustice that shows complete disregard and disrespect for their performance and accomplishments.”
“”For many of us, today’s decision by the committee has forever damaged the credibility of the institution that is the College Football Playoff.”
Alabama moved from the top nine to the top four in a quick fashion, and we have to wonder why. Of course, Bama has spent its share of time in the CFP including winning it a couple of times. So, what is up with them getting the bid over FSU who had been in the Top Five for the past five weeks.
The Seminoles did not lose. The Seminoles did what the CFP committee had always wanted the undefeated conference champions to have a chance for the national championship.
But not this year, the whole scenario has become a joke. I told several people just weeks ago if Bama beat Georgia then the committee would find a way for the “cash cow” to be there on Jan. 1.
Thanks for the CFP to be nothing new. It’s the same message. Let’s Bama play.
