This weekend saw the first round of the College Football Playoff. Four team saw their season end, and four teams will move on to the second round. Three of the four teams will be underdogs in the quarterfinals. Regardless, outside of the wins and losses on the field, the first round saw other wins and losses.
The first round saw some amazing games and some horrible games. Alabama took a solid victory over Oklahoma by a ten-point difference. Meanwhile, Miami took out Texas A&M, 10-3. Still, the Group of Five teams struggled as Tulane fell 41-10 and James Madison fell 51-34. This leads to the question, outside of the teams on the fields, who won and lost in the playoffs?
Winner: Notre Dame
Notre Dame is a big winner. The Irish are still not happy about not making the CFP. They were 10-2, and the only two losses of the season were the first two games of the year. In those games, they fell to Miami and Texas A&M. Those two faced off in the first round of the College Football Playoff. To say it was a defensive game would be kind. The game ended at 10-3, but it also saw multiple turnovers and missed kicks. The winner here may be Notre Dame.
Notre Dame lost to each of those two teams, but has been better on offense than both of the two teams in the last ten games. Notre Dame put up 24 points against Miami and another 40 against Texas A&M. They went on to win ten straight games, none of them by less than ten points. Still, the Irish did not make it to the playoffs. The two teams struggled to score against each other until Miami scored late in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, Notre Dame scored well against both teams.
The Irish were one of the first teams out, and watching the two at-large teams in front of them is proof enough to say they should have been in the playoffs. Adding on to that was the failure of the G5 teams, making it clear they should have been a playoff team.
Loser: Michigan
Without a doubt, Michigan is the biggest loser without playing a single game. They are in search of a new head coach with the firing of Sherrone Moore. One option that has been presented is the attempt to lure away Marcus Freeman. There are still rumors that Freeman could be heading to Michigan, still the results of the Miami and Texas A&M game show that Freeman should be the coach of a playoff team, which could result in his rejection of Michigan.
Still, the major option for Michigan has been Kalen DeBoer. DeB0er has been the top target of schools on this cycle. It has been widely assumed that if Alabama lost to Auburn in the last weekend of the season, Penn State would make a run. Now the question is, will Michigan wait? Alabama took the 34-24 win over Oklahoma, while tying the biggest comeback in CFP history.
In the process, DeBoer will be coaching another game. If he is the top target for the Wolverines, they may need to wait. Alabama will play again on January 1, in the Rose Bowl against Indiana. While grabbing a stud coach after the game would be huge, grabbing them because they lost to a Big Ten team puts a damper on things. DeBoer is one of the top targets for Michigan, and this just puts a negative spin, potentially, plus a delay on bringing him in.
Winner: Ole Miss
There is no doubt that expectations changed with the departure of Lane Kiffin from Ole Miss to LSU. It is clear Ole Miss fans are not happy with Kiffin, with signs saying “Geaux to Hell.” Regardless of the signs and the negative attitude toward Kiffin, the team put up. The first time the team faced Tulane, they won the game 45-10. It was nearly the same domination as they won 41-10 under Pete Golding.
The team was not totally the same in the second bout wth Tulane. They had just over 50 yards less of offense and scored four fewer points. Still, the Rebels were just as dominant. They once again controlled the air game, while also being the better team on the ground. The biggest difference between the two games was turnovers. Ole Miss turned over the ball once in both games, but Tulane turned it over once in the first game and three times in the second.
At the end of the day, concerns about Lane Kiffin leaving were squashed for a week, until they play in the Sugar Bowl. If Ole Miss wins there, Lane will be forgotten. If not, there will be questions
Loser: All G5 teams
The G5 just got destroyed. It was further proof, they do not belong in the playoffs. The first game with a Group of Five team in the playoffs was Tulane, which was down 14-0 in the first quarter. If a fan did not change the channel to the Brawl of the Wild in the FCS playoffs or college basketball, they could have by the fourth quarter. Tulane was down 27-4 with 15 minutes left to play.
Meanwhile. James Madison showed they did not belong. The Dukes were totally overmatched in the game, falling 34-6 in the first half. James Madison did try to make a game of it, but it was also against back-ups for the Ducks, and JMU fell 51-34. At the end of the day, the two G5 teams lost by a combined 47 points, showing they should be the exception to the playoffs and not the norm.
Winner: The CFP
At the end of the day, the CFP won. They have four great semi-final games, which will draw viewers. There is a historically good team with Alabama facing off against Indiana, plus the Kiffin storyline lasting another week against Georgia. While the addition of the group of five could have made cool stories, we got eight amazing teams fighting for the title now.
The CFP got perfection in terms of ratings, which is the aim for any network at the end of the day. The first quarterfinal has Miami and Ohio State, who have squared off for a national title in the past. Then we get blueblood Alabama against the upstart Indiana, plus Oregon against Texas Tech, and an SEC rematch of Ole Miss and Georgia. Minus Michigan facing Ohio State or Auburn against Alabama, the ratings gold mine is clear for the CFP.
Loser: The CFP Fans
Can we all just be honest for a second? James Madison is a sick story. They have been great this year, but are clearly not at the level of a CFP team. But we have to think of the true impact. JMU and Tulane had no reason to be in the playoff, but they are amazing teams. Neither of them had a shot in the CFP. Tulane and James Madison got the joy and fun of being in the playoffs, but this is not a 2004 George Mason situation in the NCAA Basketball tournament. Could that happen one day? Yes. Is it likely? No.
The CFP has promoted the idea that anyone can win it to be the champion. It is the same thing that the basketball tournament has offered… false hope. The 16 seed has won before in the basketball tournament, but they are just 2-54. This seems like the situation of allowing a group of five champions in the games. At the end of the day, it is all just false hope, and fans get the brunt of the suffering. JMU fans just spent thousands to travel across the country to see their team destroyed. It will happen every year. Stories like JMU and Tulane are fun, but until true parity exists, we get a fake playoff game, which is nothing more than a crimmmage for a true playoff team. This weekend showed that.
