Playoffs and the Bowls.

Top 4 are in, most of the Talking heads were in favor of the Irish at #4 over Texas A&M and the AP and Coaches polls also had the Irish at #4.

Jimbo not happy of course, but the good news is that he can go to the Orange Bowl against a good but not great UNC team and probably come away with a big win to finish out the season and finish in the top 4, maybe even #3. If he played Alabama a loss is likely and possibly a big loss.

I heard the ESPNU guys talking about how IU got screwed by not getting a New Years 6 Bowl game, that Iowa State with 3 losses including a bad home loss to Louisiana got a New Years 6 bowl.

Always some unhappinesss.

One thing that is really different this year is that it's only 2 weeks till the Semifinals, in some years the semifinals teams wouldn't have played in 4-5 weeks depending on when they played their last game. Saban said that the prep is very manageable because he will treat it just like a bye week and the staff and players are used to that prep. He's also sending the team home for Christmas, which seems a bit risky, but apparently they did it on one of their bye weeks and it worked out. Team was given specific instructions on how to handle the trip home and they did it as directed. Irish players aren't local and most would have to get on a plane to fly home and back so the logistics and risk is a bit higher.

Not sure what Clemson and Ohio State are going to be doing.

 

Hah! Even Jimbo thinks that Notre Dame should be in the playoffs!! The link is to the Coaches poll votes, who voted who where!! FWIW Dabo voted Ohio State #11!! That should be good bulletin board material in Columbus! Nick Saban voted ND #3 and A&M #4 Ohio State #5.

Ballots of college football coaches on the Amway Coaches Poll panel


Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M

1. Alabama

2. Clemson

3. Texas A&M

4. Notre Dame

5. Ohio State

6. Cincinnati

7. Georgia

8. Indiana

9. Oklahoma

10. Florida

 

Alabama AA WR Jaylon Waddle will be back for Notre Dame....just what we needed!!

 

I think Jimbo said it all when he said: "We won 7 SEC games in a row... some teams didn't even play 7 games." That has merit.
Not saying it is how the final decision should be made, but it was clearly what he believed.
I don't think anyone thought ND shouldn't get in. They have quality wins, and only one loss to #2.

Waddle makes them a totally different team... hard as that might be to believe. That kid is the fastest thing I've seen in forever.

 

Kirby invited Clemson to play in the SEC National Invitational Playoffs:

Kirby Smart, Georgia

1. Alabama

2. Clemson

3. Texas A&M

4. Florida

 

LOL... Kirby... what a character.

Looks like a LOT of the G5 coaches towed the company line and voted Cincinnati up pretty high!

 

A lot of that kind of talk here in Indiana. As much of an IU fan as I am, I don't have a problem with it. If the program is as good as it looked in this strange and short season and is not a one-year wonder, there are lots of good things awaiting on the horizon. Plus, even with three losses, Iowa State is an excellent team.

 

Once again, we have to go back and look at who have they played? But hey now they get to play a top 10 team. All they have to do is win one game and they too can claim a National Championship.

 

Probably going to be a lot champions this year kp

 

Yeah Bowl wins are tricky to evaluate sometimes and you do have to realize it's just one game. UCF beating a very good Auburn team doesn't mean they would have been able to play the SEC West and have a better record than Auburn did that year.

That great win that Boise State had over OU didn't mean that if they had played in the B12 that year that they would have been B12 Champions.

But personally I think it's a good thing if the David's get their shot at Goliath and then if they pull off the win, let'em crow a little bit!

 

No what it lets them do is play a very easy schedule then win a single game and claim it is the same as beating 3 top ten teams in the regular season, a playoff semifinalist and the finalist.
I just hope Georgia can get up for what will essentially be a consolation game.

 

Well they play the schedule that they have, they can't play a Power 5 schedule because they can't get into a Power 5 conference. But I'm ok if when one of the Group of 5 teams has a great year that they want to play for the championship, and since it's unlikely that will ever happen with a 4 team playoff, I'm ok if they beat a good Power 5 team in a bowl that they do some crowing about it like UCF did back in 2017 after they beat Auburn. Everybody knows that the team that wins the Playoff is the Nat'l Champion.

I think most would like to see an 8 team playoff and with that they can let a Group of 5 team into the mix and then they have their shot.

 

I see that South Carolina at 2-8 and having an interim coach in Mike Bobo, is playing in the ...I'm not making this up either...Gasparilla Bowl! Bobo said the players weren't asked, they were told when bowl practice was starting and to either showup and play or opt out. Their the SEC and SEC teams play ball!!! lol!

________________________


Many Power 5 schools have decided not to accept bowl bids due to the unusual circumstances of the 2020 season. The South Carolina Gamecocks will not be one of them. In fact, the players didn’t even get a say in the matter.

© Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports
The Gamecocks accepted an invitation to play in the Gasparilla Bowl against UAB on Dec. 26. It’s hardly a prestige game, and one that some teams may have passed on. Interim coach Mike Bobo explained, however, that players were not even given the chance to vote on whether or not to accept the invitation. The reason? This is the SEC, and SEC teams play ball.


“There’s no vote in the SEC. You come to play in the SEC, you come to play ball,” Bobo said, via Ben Breiner of The State. “I told them we’re going to play in the ballgame, and if guys didn’t want to play, we’re going to report back on this date, if you don’t want to play, you can opt out. We didn’t have a vote.”

 

I don't have a problem with them crowing... Oh hell, not much point in beating this dead horse. I kind of agree with Coach Bobo. If the virus causes a cancellation that's one thing but cancelling a game or opting out of a game for no reason is kind of shitty.

 

I think a 6 team Playoff would be good. You get two more slots, but #1 and #2 get byes.
This would allow #6 to play #3, and have a shot at a win, rather than playing Bama and getting housed.

 

Hey Scott a couple of UNC's best players just opted out. Good news for the Aggies, built in excuse for Mack Brown!!

 

If I were a coach of a team in a non-playoff bowl I think I'd be tempted to use it as an early spring drills and scrimmage. Tell the players who won't be returning that their last regular season game is their last game and then use the bowl prep to prepare players who are going to be returning next year and only play those guys in the bowl.

 

8 team playoff. P5 champs + 3 at large.

Require minimum # wins or minimum rating or both for P5 champs. If minimums not met, add 1 at large for each not met.

 

Sid I'd like that, but I think they'd have to shorten the season by a game. (which I'd be OK with)