All- SEC final could be on tap in playoff
On Sunday, the field for the fourth College Football Playoff was set, and for the first time two teams from the same conference made it.
Alabama ( 11- 1) of the Southeastern Conference will face Clemson ( 12- 1) in the Sugar Bowl, and fellow SEC member Georgia (12-1) will play Oklahoma ( 12- 1) in the Rose Bowl.
Another all-SEC championship game could be on the horizon, and for the second straight year the value of a conference championship was diminished. But the winds of change are not picking up even with both the Big Ten and Pac- 12 out of this playoff altogether.
“It doesn’t change my view that the present structure is best for college football,” Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany said. “I can be supportive of ( the selection committee) and at the same time be disappointed and a little bit surprised.”
When Alabama got the nod for the fourth and final spot over Ohio State, the Big Ten was left out for the first time, and for the second time in four seasons the Pac-12 was shut out, too. When the conference commissioners were putting the playoff together, ensuring only conference champions would be included was considered. Eventually, the compromise was to craft a protocol that emphasized conference championships, but not make them mandatory.
“I don’t see anything that has happened in the first four years in the work of the selection committee or the playoff that is inconsistent with how it was designed or what was possible,” Pac- 12 commissioner Larry Scott said.
The Crimson Tide or Buckeyes was the toughest call for the committee in the fouryear history of the playoff.
“We walked into that room knowing we had a big task ahead of us,” said committee chairman Kirby Hocutt, the athletic director at Texas Tech.
Franklin thankful for Penn State’s bid
James Franklin has quickly brought Penn State back to national prominence. The Nittany Lions fell short of their goal, a College Football Playoff bid, but a trip to the desert for the Fiesta Bowl is big step.
No. 9 Penn State will face another 10- 2 team that once had playoff aspirations when it meets No. 12 Washington in the Dec. 30 Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium.
“We couldn’t be more excited. We’re blessed for this opportunity. A great way to end the season,” Franklin said. “You’re playing in a big- time bowl game, a great venue, but you’re also having to face a challenging and difficult opponent.”
Peach Bowl keeps its coaches
The Peach Bowl looked like a matchup of coaches who might not be there: Scott Frost of Central Florida and Gus Malzahn of Auburn.
But Malzahn, who was rumored to be in line for the open job at Arkansas, agreed to a new seven-year deal to remain with the Tigers ( 10- 3) after a strong push late in the season, a source told The Associated Press. The source said Malzahn will make more than $7 million in the final year of the contract.
Frost, meanwhile, was introduced as the new head coach at Nebraska, but he reiterated that he would coach the Knights — the only undefeated team in FBS at 12-0 — in their Jan. 1 bowl game.
“I don’t want to leave the players down there without a coach,” he said. “They deserve to have the best chance they possibly can, especially in a bowl game they qualified for.”
Streak continues, drought ends
Florida State had its hopes for making the College Football Playoff dashed by October, coach Jimbo Fisher bolted last week for Texas A&M and the Seminoles had to win a rescheduled game against LouisianaMonroe just to achieve the requisite six victories for bowl eligibility.
So even though the Seminoles ( 6- 6) aren’t exactly celebrating, they did manage to set an NCAA record for consecutive bowl appearances with their 36th in a row. Their game against Southern Mississippi ( 8- 4) in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana, on Dec. 27, will break a tie with Nebraska, which went to 35 bowls from 1969 to 2003.
Down in Las Cruces, New Mexico, however, they’re partying like it’s 1960. That’s how long it has been since the Aggies have played in the postseason. The nation’s longest bowl drought ended Sunday when New Mexico State ( 6- 6) accepted an invitation to play Utah State ( 6- 6) in the Arizona Bowl on Dec. 29.
“I assume that bowl game in 1960 was in November or December, so I’m confident Dwight D. Eisenhower was president of the United States,” athletic director Mario Moccia said. “That puts it in an historical context, doesn’t it?”
Big Ten has eight make bowl games
In addition to Ohio State ( Cotton) and Penn State ( Fiesta), the Big Ten sent six other teams to bowls this season.
Wisconsin ( 12- 1) also got a “New Year’s Six” bid and will face Miami ( 10- 3) in the Orange Bowl.
The others: Michigan ( Outback, vs. South Carolina); Michigan State ( Holiday, vs. Washington State); Northwestern (Music City vs. Kentucky); Iowa ( Pinstripe, vs. Boston College); and Purdue (Foster Farms, vs. Arizona).