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Paul Finebaum says other national contenders ‘not in same universe’ as Alabama, Clemson
By Keith Farner
Published:
The first reveal of the first College Football Playoff rankings is about a month away, but ESPN has released an initial ranking of teams still alive.
The Worldwide Leader claims 43 teams are still in the mix for a New Year’s Eve semifinal berth. Of course, the main SEC teams jockeying for position for the CFP are Alabama, Georgia and Auburn.
Cari Champion and Paul Finebaum discussed on SportsCenter if a potential third straight meeting in the national championship game for Alabama and Clemson is good for college football.
“I frankly think the country, easy for me to speak for the college football fans of this country, would probably rather see someone new,” Finebaum said. “Whether it’s Oklahoma, whether it’s Penn State, maybe Georgia coming on. But right now, Cari, these are the two best teams. And I don’t know if the third team, or the fourth team, or the fifth team, are really in the same universe right now as Alabama and Clemson.”
About Alabama, ESPN’s “The Eliminator,” said, “In obliterating Ole Miss, the Tide posted their largest point total since 1979, held the Rebels without a third-down conversion on 13 attempts and won their second straight SEC game by more than 50 points for the first time in program history.”
For Georgia, ESPN said, “Don’t look now, but after a 41-0 thumping of Tennessee, the schedule ahead appears manageable for the unbeaten SEC East front-runners, save for a November trip to Auburn. Freshman QB Jake Fromm continues to play well, and sophomore Jacob Eason is back from injury.”
Auburn was also listed as another SEC and CFP contender: “Two straight SEC blowouts and an offensive awakening have bolstered the Tigers ahead of a tune-up against Ole Miss to prepare for the meat of the schedule: consecutive road games at LSU, Arkansas and Texas A&M.”
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
