CFB World Debates Whether Alabama Will Sneak Into Playoff After USC’s Loss

The Trojans loss has opened the door for chaos in the final rankings.

With No. 4 USC’s loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship game on Friday night, fans are back to debating which teams belong in the College Football Playoff. At the moment, Ohio State’s presence at No. 5 makes them the likely Trojans replacement, but that isn’t a guarantee.

Some fans are not confident in No. 3 TCU beating Kansas State on Saturday, and think a Horned Frogs loss will allow Alabama into the playoff. Others believe the Crimson Tide are better than the Buckeyes, and should be in regardless of what happens the rest of the way. In general, this situation has seemed to cause chaos.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Alabama — with the best player in CFB (Bryce Young) — is going to get in.

And win the whole damn thing.

— Matt Hayes (@MattHayesCFB) December 3, 2022

The loss by USC locks TCU into the Playoff. 2-loss Alabama won’t get in over a 1-loss TCU.

All that’s left to determine is the seeding.

— Matt Schick (@ESPN_Schick) December 3, 2022

The best argument for Alabama over Ohio State is that Nick Saban’s track record of using the month off to get his team sharp and prepared for the playoff is incredible. But that is not an argument that you can really make in good faith in the committee room.

— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) December 3, 2022

Good morning,

TCU should automatically be in the playoffs, meaning the final spot will go to Ohio State.

As a sane Alabama alum, it’s my civic duty to remind you that not all of us are psychos who live in fairytale land and understand how the standings work.

Go USA🇺🇸🇺🇸

— Cole Thompson (@MrColeThompson) December 3, 2022

The loss by USC locks TCU into the Playoff. 2-loss Alabama won’t get in over a 1-loss TCU.

All that’s left to determine is the seeding.

— Matt Schick (@ESPN_Schick) December 3, 2022

If we are going to play this game,

Alabama is undefeated in 719 Minutes and 58 seconds of the 720 Minutes of the season and therefore should be in the CFB Playoff over Ohio State. https://t.co/C5sGy5Riv0

— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsESPN) December 2, 2022

A TCU loss away from the playoff everyone wants.

Georgia v Alabama
Michigan v Ohio St.

— Casey Mattox (@CaseyMattox_) December 3, 2022

Neither the Crimson Tide nor the Buckeyes are playing this weekend, which seems to benefit them as they don’t face the risk of adding another loss to their resume.

While Alabama hasn’t lost by more than six points this year the committee has yet to allow a two-loss team into the College Football Playoff since the tournament began in 2015. Therefore, even though Ohio State’s blowout loss to Michigan was detrimental, precedent says the Buckeyes will remain above Alabama in the final rankings.

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• For more Alabama coverage, go to Bama Central