There will be one three-loss team in the College Football Playoff this year.
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The No. 9 Alabama Crimson Tide limped into the playoff after losing the SEC championship 28-7 to No. 3 Georgia. The Crimson Tide didn’t play their best football in November, losing 23-21 to Oklahoma on Nov. 15 and surviving the “Iron Bowl” in a 27-20 win over Auburn on Nov. 29.
Alabama has plenty of flaws, as evidenced by a 31-17 loss to Florida State in its season opener. Still, the CFP selection committee chose to put the Crimson Tide in the final bracket. They will travel to play at No. 8 Oklahoma on Friday night.
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Per Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, an SEC defensive coordinator took a shot at Alabama. They argued the team should not have made the CFP and could have lost five games in the regular season.
“I think Alabama should have, like, five losses this year,” the coach said. “They shouldn’t be there.”
While the Crimson Tide have some gnarly losses, they do have several impressive wins. Alabama won four games in a row over Georgia, Vanderbilt, Missouri and Tennessee. The Crimson Tide defeated Vandy and Tennessee by double-digit scores.
CFP committee member Hunter Yurachek argued those wins were enough to warrant inclusion in the playoff, even though Alabama was blown out in the SEC championship.
“We evaluated all of those conference championship games, and felt like, in the end, regardless of Alabama’s performance yesterday, their body of work in those first 12 games where they had probably the best win (a 24-21 win over Georgia on Sept. 27), arguably this season,” Yurachek said. “Having to win against Vanderbilt, wins against Tennessee as well.”
Alabama can prove its worth by defeating Oklahoma on Friday night. Per ESPN BET, the Crimson Tide are a 1.5-point favorite over the Sooners.
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For more on the NCAA, head to Newsweek Sports.
