Shaw believes playoff eventually will have 8
Although David Shaw agreed with the choices of Clemson, Georgia, Oklahoma and Alabama for the College Football Playoff, he also thinks the absence of USC and Ohio State eventually will help produce an eight-team playoff.
“I think they made the right choice,” the Stanford head coach said Monday. “Every single year, you have two or three (teams) that say, ‘We should be included also,’ and they have a legitimate case. Year one, it was TCU and Baylor.”
This is the second time in the four years of the College Football Playoff that the Pac-12 champion didn’t make it. Oregon was picked in 2014 and Washington last year, but the Cardinal (11-2 before winning the Rose Bowl) were left out in 2015 and the Trojans this year.
“In my opinion,” Shaw said, “we’re going to keep collecting these data points every single year, and at some point, I’m pretty sure it will happen.” An eight-team field “is the only thing that makes sense to have a true playoff.”
Shaw’s No. 15 Cardinal (9-4) were eliminated from playoff contention when they lost at Washington State a month ago, if they hadn’t already been doomed by two earlyseason losses, including one at San Diego State.
They’ll play No. 13 TCU (10-3) in the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio on Dec. 28. “Our guys look at it as a challenge,” Shaw said. “The winner of this game is probably going to finish in the top 10 after all the polls are said and done.”
He hopes freshman offensive tackle Walker Little will be able to return to the starting lineup after being hurt in the Washington State game. “We’ll know more in the next 10 days to two weeks,” Shaw said.
Cornerback Alijah Holder and inside linebacker Sean Barton are both out for the season. Cornerback Terrence Alexander, who has missed almost the whole season, will be “very doubtful” for the bowl game, Shaw said. Outside linebacker Curtis Robinson should be able to play, Shaw said.
Disappointing crowd: The Pac-12 title game at Levi’s Stadium drew well below the announced attendance of 48,031 — probably not much more than 30,000 — and Shaw said playing on Friday night was a big factor.
“For most of us coaches, we would love that game to be on Saturday,” he said. “This is the Bay Area. On a Friday night, traffic is insane. It’s hard to get to. It’s hard for people to get off work early.” The attendance would be much larger on a Saturday night, he said.
Some have suggested moving the game back to a campus site after the contract with the 49ers at Levi’s expires in 2019. Before moving to Levi’s in 2014, the title game was held at the home stadium of the division winner with the better conference record: Oregon in 2011, Stanford in ’12 and Arizona State in ’13. Attendance generally was much higher at the campus sites.
Shaw said he was “on the fence” between neutral or campus sites, but he said the 49ers and Levi’s Stadium staff have done a great job with the game the past four years.