Based on CFP chairman's comments, Georgia's decision to schedule Notre Dame continues to pay off
After beating Alabama in Tuscaloosa, it was no surprise to see LSU jump up a spot and earn the No. 1 ranking in the new College Football Playoff rankings but one move that was a surprise to many was seeing the Crimson Tide fall behind Georgia in the updated poll.
Georgia currently ranks No. 4, while Alabama is ranked just behind the Bulldogs at No. 5.
Both teams have a home loss but Georgia’s stands out from Alabama’s, as the Bulldogs’ loss was against a South Carolina team with a losing record.
Following the latest College Football Playoff reveal, the committee chairman Rob Mullens was asked how much each loss for Georgia and Alabama weigh on their total resumes.
“It’s certainly a part of the discussion, no doubt,” Mullen answered. “We’re aware of the South Carolina loss for Georgia and that Alabama’s loss was against a team that was ranked No. 1, so that’s clearly on the board when we’re comparing them. But we’re also looking at Georgia’s wins against top-20 teams Florida and Notre Dame.”
It should be noted that Mullens is also Oregon’s AD, so when the Ducks are being discussed by the Playoff committee, he is forced to leave the room and cannot vote on where the Ducks should rank.
Here’s what Mullen had to say when asked how big of a dropoff there is with the committee’s rankings between No. 5 (Alabama) and No. 6 (Oregon).
“Again, I’m not in the room, but when I came back and just for those of you that know how the system works, you rank one through three, then you work from a pool of teams and rank four through six,” Mullens said. “There’s a lot of discussion about all the teams in that pool, and the separator for Georgia in that pool was their two wins against top-20 teams.”
Based on that comment, Georgia’s decision to play Notre Dame this season continues to pay off for Kirby Smart’s program. While Dawg Nation was treated to one of the best atmospheres of the season when Georgia hosted the Fighting Irish, that win is also serving the program when it comes to its Playoff ranking.
Coming off a season in which Georgia missed the College Football Playoff after playing Austin Peay, MTSU, UMass and Georgia Tech in the non-conference, it’s clear the committee continues to favor teams willing to play tougher competition when possible.
I’m rooting for both Notre Dame and Florida to continue to win only because it benefits UGA.
I’m sorry but as a Georgia Bulldog, I will never root for the Florida Gators in any circumstance.
This is nice, being in the #4 slot and all, but at this point it seems largely irrelevant, considering the games left to play. First, UGA has to beat Auburn on the road, win out, and then face LSU in the title game. Not impossible, but pretty long odds.
Because of the South Carolina loss, only by winning the SEC does UGA stand any chance of remaining in the conversation. Everything else is just noise, regardless of where Florida and Notre Dame end up in the rankings.
As far as Alabama is concerned, it seems fairly straightforward that if LSU wins the SEC, they are going to slide into the #4 slot as the best 1-loss team in the country (with the best loss).
There are a number of merits to playing (if you win) a tough non-conference schedule, which we see here, and it certainly makes things more interesting- the subjective nature of strength-of-schedule versus straight W-L (Sorry, Gophers) creates better games through the season, but it makes it a lot tougher to see who really is the best. An eight-team playoff would be more ideal, but harder to manage.
As I have watched Georgia’s games this year…one thing stands out to me. One week…they play like wildfire and next week, well…the enthusiasm and the player’s commitment just seem to be lacking. Yes, I know that a couple games were played in some heavy rain, but both teams play in the same field & weather. South Carolina(with a non-head-coach and an under average talent level, came to Athens and BEAT Georgia). I believe Kirby Smart is a Good Head Coach, but they have been inconsistent this year. Hopefully, for the Dawg’s sake they can focus and play like the game means something to them “on the Plains”…or goodbye playoffs. As far as where they are ranked this week…not important..as Only One ranking Matters…the final one.
What impact do you think playing against 5 teams coming off of BYE weeks in the last 6 games and 3 teams in a row coming off of BYE weeks has on Kirby and his pups? I won’t argue that the execution seems lacking at moments, but one thing I’ll vehemently defend is that Kirby’s boyz lack commitment. They won’t quit and to that I say Go Dawgs
As CKS says, “All that matters is how we finish”.
I think the players know what is at stake Sat. Plus it is Auburn. Even during down years, each side plays hard no matter the records.
Yes. It is always a 50/50 rivalry or if you will, regardless of where each team is ranked, it is always a toss up.
The offense has been inconsistent…as far as the SC loss goes…upsets happen… though for the life of me I don’t understand how they managed to lose to SC…as far as the offense goes.. besides Coley’s inability to be creative…I think someone they have missed even more than receivers…is Holyfield..the run up the middle plays worked the last couple of years when UGA had Chubb or Holyfield…Swift is a great back…but he’s not the bruisers type back..and they just don’t have that type of back this year
Well an awful lot had to go wrong for that to happen. 4 sacks when only 1 was allowed all year before that. 4 turnovers by fromm only 1 all year before that. 2 missed field goals by the best kicker in college football. Wither of those make it we win… you have to step back and see how that was a perfect storm of things going wrong and while we definitely can have skme criticisms when you have a day like that you can lose to any team.
Also Zeus is a bruiser he seems to be the only one who can consistently run it up the middle and for the life of me idk why we keep running swift up the middle when hes better with space or a running start.
The Irish game definitely helps ranking at this point of the season. Plus, it was a fantastic fan experience compared to a less storied opponent. However, as far as making the CFB playoffs, we’d be in, Irish or not, if we win out. And, we’d be out, Irish or not, if we lose any other game this season.
Don’t get me wrong, scheduling up is almost always the best move, as it was here. I strongly support it. But, in the end, this up scheduled opponent won’t make a difference for making the playoff this season.
I can forgive a loss or a bad game if it looks like an anomaly. Turnovers, bad weather, injury to an important player. But you have to show that you can beat good teams. I care more about your wins than losses. The committee needs to reward teams that have a challenging schedule. And punish those who are skating by with weak ones. If your team isn’t going out and taking chances by scheduling games with the big boys then you should just enjoy the Orange Bowl or such.