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The only real question of the day for the final college football playoff rankings was how the committee would interpret SMU's ACC Championship loss to Clemson, and whether their valiant comeback effort would be enough to keep them in over the Alabama Crimson Tide. The answer to that question was yes, as the committee gave SMU the 11th seed on Sunday afternoon, setting up a matchup with Penn State, while Clemson will hit the road to take on Texas.
During his postgame interview with ESPN following Clemson's ACC Championship victory, Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney publicly campaigned for SMU to make the final cut, and it appears that support carried over into Clemson's watch party on Sunday afternoon.
“During Clemson’s @CFBPlayoff watch party, the loudest cheer of the day wasn’t for their own ranking or matchup, but for SMU’s inclusion in the playoff,” reported college football insider Molly McGrath of ESPN on X, formerly Twitter. “Dabo Swinney was so happy that the committee got it right and didn’t punish the Mustang’s for a conference championship game loss.”
Did the committee get it right?
As previously noted, there was considerable debate heading into championship Saturday as to whether SMU would still be able to make it into the big dance with a loss considering their relatively lackluster strength of schedule throughout the regular season, which they finished 11-1.
The fact that SMU got off to such a poor start against Clemson certainly didn't help their cause, and at certain points in the game on Saturday, it wasn't unreasonable to assume that the Crimson Tide were in the driver's seat for the final spot.
However, despite trailing by 17 points entering the fourth quarter, SMU fought back valiantly in that final frame, ultimately tying the game before a late field goal from Clemson won them the ACC Championship. That comeback effort evidently was enough to convince the college football playoff committee to give SMU the nod despite Alabama's pedigree.
The controversy that ensued after the committee's decision to snub undefeated Florida State in favor of Alabama last year, and the fact that Alabama lost their ensuing playoff matchup, probably made it a little bit easier of a pill to swallow on Sunday.
In any case, Clemson football will now prepare to hit the road to take on the Texas Longhorns, who have only lost to the Georgia Bulldogs, while SMU will gear up for a matchup with Penn State.
