During the Colts’ Peyton Manning-fueled decade of dominance, Reggie Wayne had a pet phrase to describe the latest underdog in their path to another 12-win season.

Those other guys are on scholarship, too, he’d repeat, seemingly week after week.

Nick Saban might want to borrow that expression. Washington, Clemson and Ohio State are in the College Football Playoff, but nobody is giving them a real chance to upset Alabama, the overwhelming favorite to win its fifth national title in 10 years under Saban.

Washington, led by pocket-passer Jake Browning, is up first. A 2014 semifinal rematch with Ohio State or 2015 title game rematch against Clemson presumably follows.

Can anybody derail the Tide express? That’s something we’ve been debating all season.

Answer: One team has a shot in this year’s College Football Playoff: Ohio State.

The one thing we’ve seen from this Alabama offense lately is that it takes a bit to get started. A team that doesn’t beat itself on special teams and quarterback play (unlike Florida) will keep it close in the first half. Ohio State won’t do that.

A few reasons I would take Ohio State as the team that pushes the Crimson Tide: Urban Meyer, its defense and quarterback play.

Nov 26, 2016; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer leads the team onto the field before the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Ohio Stadium. Ohio State won 30-27. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Meyer is a big-game coach and has proven he can take down Nick Saban. The Buckeyes’ defense is also the No. 3 scoring defense in the country only allowing 14.2 points per game. And lastly, although J.T. Barrett isn’t having a stellar year, he’s a dual-threat quarterback who can keep drives alive on the ground and can also make some big plays through the air. The combination of those three could make the Buckeyes really push the Crimson Tide for the national title.

Do I see Alabama losing? Not this team. But Ohio State — if it gets by Clemson — is the team that has the best chance.

— Jon Cooper, director of operations

Answer: You know who can beat Alabama in the playoff? Alabama, that’s who. That’s it. That’s the list.

Only one team has been able to stay within one score of the Crimson Tide this season, and that’s Ole Miss. The Rebels scored two garbage-time TDs to make the final deceptively close.

Pretty much everybody else has been blown off the field. Jalen Hurts is a dynamic addition to the offense. Jonathan Allen is a one-man wrecking crew — he has plenty of help around him, though — on defense. ‘Bama has the best players and the best coaching. Both are irrefutable.

While Washington, Ohio State or Clemson could conceivably win, it won’t happen unless the Tide throw up on themselves with four turnovers and a dozen penalties. They all need help.

If you’re waiting for Hurts to cower or the defense to crumble, good luck. You’re gonna need it.

— John Crist, senior writer

Answer: I’m done picking against the Tide.

I believe I’ve picked against Alabama straight up three times this season — at Ole Miss, at Arkansas and at LSU — and I’ve picked against them versus spread a few times, as well. After the first quarter against Florida in the SEC title game, the offense was literally going backward, yet Alabama still managed to take the game’s lead into the second period.

Unless Washington or the Clemson/Ohio State winner can hold their own at the line of scrimmage, while also getting a career performance from the quarterback position, Alabama won’t even be threatened in the second half of any of these Playoff games. In the unlikely event that both of those things occur, the Crimson Tide will likely need to lose the turnover margin to boot.

At this point, resistance just seems futile. Alabama all the way without much of a fight.

— Michael Wayne Bratton, news editor

Answer: One thing is clear: Alabama’s A-game is too much for anyone in the country this season.

Washington and the next potential opponent in the national championship game would need help from the Crimson Tide to pull the upset. Ohio State and Clemson have the kind of athletes and head coaches to scare Alabama, but I think the Tigers have an edge.

While J.T. Barrett (847 rushing yards, 9 TDs) has proven to be more productive with his legs than Deshaun Watson (529 rushing yards, 6 TDs) this season, Watson has all the tools a QB could ask for. And you can never have enough for Alabama.

Receivers Mike Williams (1,171 receiving yards, 10 TDs), Deon Cain (621 yards, 9 TDs) and Artavis Scott (592 yards, 5 TDs) along with tight end Jordan Leggett (637 yards, 7 TDs) can test the Tide secondary. RB Wayne Gallman (1,002 rushing yards, 15 TDs) is still there, too.

Plus, Dabo Swinney’s squad has the confidence to beat Alabama and would play with a chip on its shoulder to rectify last season’s 45-40 loss in a thrilling national title game.

Even so, Clemson has one troubling fact that’s difficult for me to ignore: Over half the games it’s played in this season (7-of-13) have been decided by one possession.

— Talal Elmasry, managing editor

Answer: As much as I would enjoy watching the Tide pummel Ohio State in the championship game to atone for blowing a 15-point lead in 2014, I don’t think we’ll get that chance. I expect Clemson to eliminate the Buckeyes in the other semifinal.

Deshaun Watson is the most accomplished offensive player in college football. He should have won the Heisman last year. If people actually watched games instead of reciting box scores and stats, he’d be the favorite this year too. (He threw for 300+ yards and 5 TDs to win his duel against Lamar Jackson in the ACC’s Game of the Year.)

Dec 3, 2016; Orlando, FL, USA; Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) runs the ball in the second half against the Virginia Tech Hokies during the ACC Championship college football game at Camping World Stadium. Clemson Tigers won 42-35. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports

Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports

I laugh at the critics who try to poke holes in Watson’s game. The biggest difference this year is he’s not running. That’s by design. Nobody is “stopping” him. He’s rushed almost 50 percent fewer times in 2016, and his rushing totals — surprise! — have been cut in half.

He’s still the same dynamic dual-threat he’s always been. In the ACC Championship Game, he tied his season-high for carries with 17, gained 85 yards and scored twice.

In other words, when the Tigers need him most, he’s there. The man threw for 580 yards in Clemson’s only loss, a 43-42 stunner at Pitt. There’s nothing he can’t do.

Well, there’s still one thing he hasn’t done: He hasn’t beaten Alabama.

He’ll need help. Wayne Gallman needs to get it going. As great as Bama’s defense is, they can’t match up physically with leading receiver Mike Williams (6-3, 225). Bama didn’t have to deal with him last year because he suffered a neck injury in the Tigers’ opener and missed the rest of the season.

Williams finished with 84 catches for 1,171 yards and 10 touchdown receptions.

You need offensive weapons to beat Alabama. Clemson has them.

And Clemson has something else, too. It has Watson. And, man, is he something else.

— Chris Wright, executive editor

Chris Wright is Executive Editor at SaturdayDownSouth.com. Email him at cwright@saturdaydownsouth.com and follow him on Twitter @FilmRoomEditor.