By JACOB CORMAN
Controversy has arisen in the college football world (CFB), with the 2023-2024 College Football season coming to an end. The playoff committee, including 13 members, was tasked with selecting 4 teams for the CFB playoffs. A season full of ups and downs with many upsets and injuries left the committee with one of the more difficult decisions in recent years.
Week 14 is a week all college football fans look forward to, as the fate of many teams’ playoff hopes end or begin thereafter. Battling for their conference championships, the PAC-12, Big Ten, ACC, Big Twelve, and SEC were the matchups that all fans were paying attention to.
Before the conference championships, the ranking was as follows: Georgia at one, Michigan at two, Washington at three, and Florida State at four.
The PAC-12 Championship was a highly anticipated matchup that ended with a game-winning field goal in the regular season. Although defeating them in the regular season, Washington was taking on the heavy-favorited Oregon Ducks. Many sports analysts and fans believed the winner of this game would book a ticket into the CFB playoffs, sending the loser packing and ending their playoff hopes. In a battle between two dominant quarterbacks, Washington’s Michael Penix was too much for the Duck’s defense, winning the PAC-12 championship with a final score of 34-31.
The SEC Championship, a conference that has dominated college football in recent years, was a game everyone was tuned into. Two powerhouse CFB programs in Alabama and Georgia were taking on one another. Winning 29 straight games and back-to-back National Championships, the Georgia Bulldogs were favored heading into the game. But by no means was this going to be an easy task facing the much improved Alabama Crimson Tide, with one of the most decorated college football coaches of all time. In a back-and-forth battle, the Alabama defense and quarterback Jalen Milroe got the best of the Bulldogs, defeating them 27-24. Despite being an eighth-seed heading into this week, many analysts also believed the winner of this would get into the playoffs sending the other team home.
Despite the hype around the PAC-12 and SEC Championships, The Big Ten, Big Twelve, and ACC Championship games were still crucial for the playoff committee.
Michigan handled the Iowa Hawkeyes easily as anticipated, defeating them 26-0, completing their undefeated season, and punching their ticket to the college football playoffs.
The Big Twelve Championship was dominated by at the time, seven-seed, Texas Longhorns defeating Oklahoma State 49-21.
With the devastating injury to star quarterback Jordan Travis in week 12, Florida State (FSU) had a lot to fight for in the ACC Championship. Sitting at a four-seed heading into their matchup against Louisville, questions began to arise about the validity of this team without their star quarterback. In a defensive battle, FSU defeated Louisville 16-6, leaving their playoff hopes in the hands of the committee.
The upset in the SEC Championship and the validity concerns of the FSU team without quarterback Jordan Travis left the committee with a tough decision ahead of them. One thing was for sure: history was going to be made.
Since the College Football Playoff four-team event was implemented in 2014, there has never been an undefeated power-five conference champion who hasn’t made the playoff. And there hasn’t ever been an SEC champion left out of the playoffs. In this case, those two teams are undefeated FSU and SEC champion Alabama.
Heading into Sunday afternoon on December 3, coaches had already pleaded their cases and now it was in the hands of the playoff committee. Teams gathered together in their facilities and waited for the decision.
At the one-seed was Michigan, which was no surprise amongst CFB fans, as they went undefeated and proved dominant throughout the season. At number two was the Washington Huskies, who completed their undefeated season and did so in one of the toughest conferences this year in college football. The third-seed was the Texas Longhorns. This came by surprise to many fans, but their one-loss season and win against Alabama proved to be enough for the committee. And at the fourth-seed, the Alabama Crimson Tide, leaving Florida State and Georgia out of the playoffs.
Junior Peyton Vancas had many thoughts on the recent committee’s decision and didn’t shy away from his frustration with the committee.
“I was very surprised. No matter what the committee’s decision was going to be, I knew it was going to be a controversial one. But I thought for sure that undefeated Florida State would make it. Just because their quarterback got hurt, I don’t think the committee should take away what they proved all season,” he said.
After the committee released its decision that Sunday, the CFB world blew up with controversy, with many fans believing Florida State was wrongfully due.
“I am disgusted and infuriated with the committee’s decision today to have what was earned on the field taken away because a small group of people decided they knew better than the results of the games,” Florida State’s Head Coach Mike Norvell released on X following the decision of the committee.
FSU’s star quarterback Jordan Travis shared his thoughts on the committee’s decision.
“I wish my leg broke earlier in the season so ya’ll could see that this team is much more than a quarterback,” Travis said.
These were just a few of the many individuals who spoke out about the committee’s decision.
Despite the controversy that has arisen from the college football committees’ decisions, the fans will still get to enjoy a highly competitive playoff. Everybody can have their opinions, but at the end of the day, no one can control the decisions the committee makes.
Taking place on January 1, the first game will be the Michigan Wolverines taking on the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Rose Bowl, a matchup between two elite defenses that many fans are excited about. The second game taking place will be the Washington Huskies taking on the Texas Longhorns in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, a battle between two high-powered offenses.
