SMU clinched the last open spot Sunday in the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff, knocking Alabama out of the bracket that placed undefeated Oregon at No. 1.
The selection committee favored the Mustangs (11-2), losers of a heartbreaker in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, who had a much less difficult schedule than the SEC’s Alabama (9-3) but ultimately still one had less defeat.
The expanded bracket marks a new era for college football, although the Alabama-SMU debate made it clear that there is no perfect formula for identifying a champion.
The tournament starts on December 20 and 21 with four matches in the first round, with teams numbered 5 to 12 participating. It concludes with the national title match in Atlanta on January 20.
Georgia, the SEC champion, was seeded second; Boise State, the Mountain West champion, earned the third seed; and Big 12 titlist Arizona State received the fourth seed and fourth and final first-round bye.
They all play in the quarterfinals of bowl games on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
Arizona State wide receiver Xavier Guillory (1) catches a touchdown pass as Jeremiah Cooper, back, defends Iowa State defensive back in the second half of the Big 12 Conference championship NCAA college football game, in Arlington, Texas, Saturday, December 7, 2024 ( AP photo/Julio Cortez)
Clemson stole a bid and the 12th seed with its blowout win over SMU – the result that ultimately cost Alabama a spot in the field.
The Tigers moved up to No. 16 in the rankings, but came in as the fifth-best conference winner.
There was some tension around how the rest of the teams were seeded, as that determined who gets home field advantage in the first round.
The games, the exact dates and times of which are still pending, are No. 12 Clemson at No. 5 Texas; No. 11 SMU at No. 6 Penn State; No. 10 Indiana at No. 7 Notre Dame; and No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Ohio State.