I get your pout but the winner of the NFC South also doesn't get a bye during Wild Card week just because they went 9-8.
There's no universe where the best mountain west or AAC team can hang with a 4 loss SEC team. There's just not.
Doesn't mean their conference banner is meaningless.
I drive way too fast but I don't deserve pole at COTA.

Dylan Sampson, Squirrel White, Dont'e Thornton and DeSean Bishop all banged up for Tennessee.

Brutal run of injuries that are going to force this offense to fight uphill much of the rest of the way.

— David Ubben (@davidubben) December 22, 2024

Tennessee desperately needed a touchdown on their first drive of the second half. Instead it's Ohio State that gets one. I think that probably does it.

Chanting SEC while they were attending to an injury is pretty low.

I'll say outside of McLane, Neyland is one of the best game environments I've ever experienced. Just orange and vertigo. Go if you ever get a chance.

Well every single one of these first round playoff games were complete duds.

GoldenBear007 said:

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Well every single one of these first round playoff games were complete duds.

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Yep. You'd think at least one of them would've been a competitive game that wasn't pretty much over at halftime. Really disappointing.

Killing Floor said:

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I get your pout but the winner of the NFC South also doesn't get a bye during Wild Card week just because they went 9-8.
There's no universe where the best mountain west or AAC team can hang with a 4 loss SEC team. There's just not.
Doesn't mean their conference banner is meaningless.
I drive way too fast but I don't deserve pole at COTA.

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That is a simple rule change then. Guarantee a spot to the P4 conference winners but not a bye.

As to your other point that is just beyond stupid. The winner of the mountain west lost by 3 to the number one team this year.


There would be plenty of other examples I could find if I took the time.

Clemson made a game of it for a while. They have a really good offense.

Why can't we give pot leaf stickers to our players?

The team that curb stomped Indiana lost one too. Nobody has a perfect record except Oregon. Happy to revisit this in the next round. Penn State will boatrace them.

Wellness check? pic.twitter.com/NgpcPt9X4Y

— Tom Fornelli (@TomFornelli) December 22, 2024

Killing Floor said:

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I get your pout but the winner of the NFC South also doesn't get a bye during Wild Card week just because they went 9-8.
There's no universe where the best mountain west or AAC team can hang with a 4 loss SEC team. There's just not.
Doesn't mean their conference banner is meaningless.
I drive way too fast but I don't deserve pole at COTA.

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You miss the point of the playoff. It doesn't matter, they have the same shot at the NC as the SEC team. That is a what makes it interesting. Watching the SEC play each other is not interesting.

Killing Floor said:

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The team that curb stomped Indiana lost one too. Nobody has a perfect record except Oregon. Happy to revisit this in the next round. Penn State will boatrace them.

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Why? Because their name is penn state? Because they play in the big 10?

It will be closer than people think.

Hang the banner!! pic.twitter.com/mwvTRmDis8

— Ryan (@Ryanmcc_9) December 22, 2024

Two B1G teams will rematch in the Rose Bowl, but then there are 2 more rounds of games...weird

Ready for a rematch?! Ohio State beats Tennessee, 42-17, and will now face Oregon in the next round of the College Football Playoff. pic.twitter.com/4ndu1OBSqU

— clevelanddotcom (@clevelanddotcom) December 22, 2024

TechDawgMc said:

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Giving Tennessee 7 points seems a bit much to me. I think there's a decent chance they win outright. It does depend on which OSU team shows up--if they play like they did against Michigan, Tennessee might win by double digits.

I'm also not going to be surprised if SMU wins. They are better than a lot of people give them credit for, and I don't trust Franklin much as a big game coach.

The other two favorites I think will win. The snow isn't good for Indiana--ND is the better defensive team and defense tends to be key in bad weather games.

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And this is why I don't gamble.

TechDawgMc said:

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TechDawgMc said:

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Giving Tennessee 7 points seems a bit much to me. I think there's a decent chance they win outright. It does depend on which OSU team shows up--if they play like they did against Michigan, Tennessee might win by double digits.

I'm also not going to be surprised if SMU wins. They are better than a lot of people give them credit for, and I don't trust Franklin much as a big game coach.

The other two favorites I think will win. The snow isn't good for Indiana--ND is the better defensive team and defense tends to be key in bad weather games.

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And this is why I don't gamble.

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I also thought Tenn was gonna pull off the upset...oops

boognish_bear said:

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TechDawgMc said:

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TechDawgMc said:

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Giving Tennessee 7 points seems a bit much to me. I think there's a decent chance they win outright. It does depend on which OSU team shows up--if they play like they did against Michigan, Tennessee might win by double digits.

I'm also not going to be surprised if SMU wins. They are better than a lot of people give them credit for, and I don't trust Franklin much as a big game coach.

The other two favorites I think will win. The snow isn't good for Indiana--ND is the better defensive team and defense tends to be key in bad weather games.

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And this is why I don't gamble.

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I also thought Tenn was gonna pull off the upset...oops

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OhioSt did their faceplant at home against Michigan; they weren't going to let it happen twice in a row.

Much like how UGA halfassed their way through the 2018 Sugar Bowl against UT; Kirby Smart wasn't going to make that mistake again the following year against us.

GoldenBear007 said:

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Okay everyone harping on SMU and Indiana needs to show the same energy for Clemson and Tennessee.

Home field advantage proving to be huge.

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That is the biggest point I see. Cold weather game, up north at home is a huge advantage.

I actually like it. If the questionable teams/conferences want to prove they belong they have to show it. We wanted access, we got it. But you better build your team to go to ND or PSU and win on the road.

The question is not whether Bama belongs instead of SMU because they are there for access. Bama and Ole Miss have to winn in their Conference. Playoff is a put giving all teams access to the prize, not a guarantee that every game is perfect.

Killing Floor said:

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I get your pout but the winner of the NFC South also doesn't get a bye during Wild Card week just because they went 9-8.
There's no universe where the best mountain west or AAC team can hang with a 4 loss SEC team. There's just not.
Doesn't mean their conference banner is meaningless.
I drive way too fast but I don't deserve pole at COTA.

---

Except that's just not true every year. MWC Utah, MWC TCU, and WAC Boise State say "hi."

It's why 2 of those teams made it to P4 conferences and is part of why we have a playoff today.

FLBear5630 said:

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GoldenBear007 said:

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Okay everyone harping on SMU and Indiana needs to show the same energy for Clemson and Tennessee.

Home field advantage proving to be huge.

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That is the biggest point I see. Cold weather game, up north at home is a huge advantage.

I actually like it. If the questionable teams/conferences want to prove they belong they have to show it. We wanted access, we got it. But you better build your team to go to ND or PSU and win on the road.

The question is not whether Bama belongs instead of SMU because they are there for access. Bama and Ole Miss have to winn in their Conference. Playoff is a put giving all teams access to the prize, not a guarantee that every game is perfect.

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I guess for us being in the big 12 we probably won't be involved in traveling on those first round road games very often. If we are getting in it is most likely because we won the conference. In that case we would have a first round bye most likely and then have a neutral site game.

I honesty thought Tennessee would do a little better. I had OSU but not in a beat down.

Clemson actually played Tex really well. They didn't make a lot of mistakes. They were putting points on the board. They didn't give up. Hats off. Their QB is solid. Texas had that burst 2nd quarter. Was a good margin but wasn't a murderous blowout.

I think the best game next week will be Buckeyes Ducks at a neutral site. Ga ND Will probably be a fun game too.

Then heading to our game with LSU. Sic'em

🥶🌹 pic.twitter.com/78hMcHVQjW

— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) December 23, 2024

So…does #Tennessee get to play in a bowl game now or what? pic.twitter.com/SAvVWLavxE

— Message Board Geniuses (@BoardGeniuses) December 23, 2024

Bear8084 said:

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So…does #Tennessee get to play in a bowl game now or what? pic.twitter.com/SAvVWLavxE

— Message Board Geniuses (@BoardGeniuses) December 23, 2024

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pic.twitter.com/ZFFS6qO1QO

— Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (@CFAPeachBowl) December 23, 2024

Jack Bauer said:

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pic.twitter.com/ZFFS6qO1QO

— Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (@CFAPeachBowl) December 23, 2024

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If Bevo wasn't a steer, we'd think it was because they were afraid he'd knock up the Chick-Fil-A cows.

Same answer as last time when Texas played Georgia. Bevo isn't allowed because AMB Sports said so.
The Atlanta MBS is built to FIFA specs. It's way bigger than a typical NFL or college football pitch.

No need to say some nonsense about the size or safety of cheerleaders. Just say no steers allowed and leave it at that.

Steve Sarkisian brought up how Texas studied ASU's near upset against Washington last season ahead of its CFP semifinal matchup with UW.

This was Kenny Dillingham after that game. It's amazing how strongly he believed then that ASU would be where it is now.@SunDevilSource pic.twitter.com/ENGbuiRdRl

— Blake Niemann (@Blakes_Take2) December 24, 2024

Star breakdown of the 8 final playoff teams (total team composite)

(2) Georgia: 14 5⭐️, 55 4⭐️, & 16 3⭐️
(3) Ohio State 14 5⭐️, 55 4⭐️, & 11 3⭐️
(4) Texas 11 5⭐️, 50 4⭐️, & 19 3⭐️
(5) Oregon 6 5⭐️, 50 4⭐️, & 29 3⭐️
(9) Notre Dame 1 5⭐️, 57 4⭐️, & 24 3⭐️
(11) Penn State 5 5⭐️,…

— CFB Home (@CFBHome) December 24, 2024