The Alabama Crimson Tide were on the outside watching the College Football Playoff round on Sunday after Clemson received the No. 12 seed and SMU received an at-large bid.
Alabama hoped so College Football Playoff The selection committee would look at their overall body of work after the conference championship weekend. The committee had Alabama as the No. 11 seed last week, but the Crimson Tide had nothing to play for Saturday.
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Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer during the game against the Mercer Bears at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on November 16, 2024. (Gary Cosby Jr. images)
As a result of Clemson’s last-second win over SMU, both ACC schools received bids for the 12-team field. No. No. 11 SMU goes on the road to play No. 6 Penn State.
The college football world seemingly cheered when fans learned Alabama would miss the playoff.
Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne made a pitch to the committee late Saturday.
“The strength of the schedule is important,” he wrote on X. “Not all schedules and conferences are created equal.
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Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe eludes a Tennessee defender, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, in Knoxville. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)
“Six of our eight wins have come against bowl-eligible teams and some of the top teams in the SEC, including SEC champion Georgia.”
Byrne also included a chart showing that Alabama was No. 3 in opponent winning percentage, No. 17 in ESPN strength of schedule and had three wins against teams in the College Football Top 25 poll. The team finished 9-3 and suffered some brutal losses.
It is the first year of the 12-team field for the College Football Playoff. The field of participants grew from four teams.
Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer during the LSU game at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on November 9, 2024. (Stephen Lew-Imagn images)
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The Crimson Tide made the playoffs last year, but fell to No. 1 Michigan, 27-20. It was Nick Saban’s last game as head coach. Kalen DeBoer took over before the start of the 2024 season.
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