Alabama’s playoff bubble burst Sunday as the College Football Playoff committee did not include them in this year’s 12-team field. The Crimson Tide finished No. 11 in the final rankings but missed out on the 12-team field after being jumped by Big 12 Champion Arizona State (No. 12 ) and ACC champion Clemson (No. 16).

No. 11 SMU (11-2) was able to edge out Alabama (9-3) for the final at-large spot in the playoff. The Mustangs suffered a 34-31 loss to Clemson in the ACC Championship Game on Saturday night, falling by a 56-yard field goal at the end of regulation.

Alabama has three wins over top-25 teams. Meanwhile, SMU does not have a ranked win on its resume and has lost to the only two ranked teams it has played. Alabama has the No. 16 ranked strength of schedule, while SMU ranks No. 60.

“Strength of schedule matters,” Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne posted on X on Saturday night. “Not all schedules and conferences are created equal. Six of our eight wins are against bowl-eligible teams and have come against some of the top teams in the SEC, including SEC champion Georgia.”

Alabama will learn its postseason fate later Sunday. Most bowl projections have the Crimson Tide playing in the Citrus Bowl, which will be held on Dec. 31 in Orlando Florida.

Big Ten champion, Oregon earned the top overall seed, while SEC champion Georgia earned the No. 2 seed. Mountain West champion Boise State earned the No. 3 seed, while Big 12 champion Arizona State earned the final first-round bye with the No. 4 seed. Clemson earned the final automatic big as the ACC champion and was awarded the No. 12 seed.

The rest of the playoff field includes No. 5 seed Texas, No. 6 seed Penn State, No. 7 seed Notre Dame, No. 8 seed Ohio State, No. 9 seed Tennessee, No. 10 seed Indiana and No. 11 seed SMU.

Teams seeded 5-12 will face off in the first round from Dec. 20-21 with the better seed hosting on its college campus. Those matchups include:

No. 12 seed Clemson at No. 5 seed Texas

No. 11 seed SMU at No. 6 seed Penn State

No. 10 seed Indiana at No. 7 seed Notre Dame

No. 9 seed Tennessee at No. 8 seed Ohio State

The four winners of those matchups will move on to face the top four seeds in the quarterfinals at neutral sites from Dec. 31 to Jan. 1. Those matchups include:

No. 12 seed Clemson/No. 5 seed Texas vs. No. 4 seed Arizona State

No. 11 seed SMU/No. 6 seed Penn State vs. Boise State

No. 10 seed Indiana/No.7 seed Notre Dame vs. Georgia

No. 9 Tennessee/No. 8 Ohio State vs. Oregon

1. Oregon
2. Georgia
3. Texas
4. Penn State
5. Notre Dame
6. Ohio State
7. Tennessee
8. Indiana
9. Boise State
10. SMU
11. Alabama
12. Arizona State
13. Miami
14. Ole Miss
15. South Carolina
16. Clemson
17. BYU
18. Iowa State
19. Missouri
20. Illinois
21. Syracuse
22. Army
23. Colorado
24. UNLV
25. Memphis