Even with a win over Georgia in Saturday’s SEC Championship Game, Alabama might not be included in this year’s College Football Playoff. If that’s the case, Nick Saban believes it will be a mistake.
During a Thursday appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Saban said the SEC should be represented in the playoff regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s game. Later in the day, the Alabama head coach doubled down on his comments, stating that “it would be a disrespect to the SEC if there isn't SEC representation in the final four.”
"I think the SEC is one of the best conferences in the country," Saban said during the SEC’s championship game teleconference. "I think Georgia is one of the best teams in the country. I think they're one of the best four teams in the country. I think if we beat them, we'd be one of the best four teams in the country. Teams do -- there's a transformation that goes through the season. How are you playing now? Where is your team now? How good are you now? I think all those things come into play."
Alabama currently sits at No. 8 in the College Football Playoff rankings. A win over top-ranked Georgia would almost assuredly see the Crimson Tide pass the Bulldogs in the rankings. Alabama would also likely climb above idle No. 5 Ohio State as well as the loser of the Pac-12 Championship Game between No. 3 Washington and No. 6.
However, the Tide would still need to climb one more spot to reach the top four. That could require upsets in either the Big 12 Championship Game between No. 4 Florida State and No. 14 Louisville, the Big 12 Championship Game between No. 7 Texas and No. 18 Oklahoma State or the Big Ten Championship Game between No. 2 Michigan and No. 16 Iowa.
"I don't pay a lot of attention to that because we can't control it, and I don't want our players to pay attention to it either," Saban said.
Later during Thursday’s teleconference, commissioner Greg Sankey said he felt confident the committee would include the SEC in this year’s playoff. The SEC has been included in each of the previous nine College Football Playoffs and has won six of them, including the last four.
“I think the rigor of this schedule within the SEC has been recognized over time,” Sankey said. “It’s not a secret that we didn’t have the non-conference success across the board that we’ve become accustomed to, yet I think the level of football here is still the highest that could be played.
“I’ll also point candidly to the reality, when the SEC teams have entered the College Football Playoff format, our success is unparalleled. It’s envied by everyone else We’ve lost in the semifinal once to a non-conference team, to a non-conference team twice in the national championship game. The only other losses we’ve experienced are two ourselves in the national championship game. The entirety of our record is the basis for the assurance that we will have a team in the CFP for the tenth consecutive year.”
Alabama and Georgia will face off Saturday at 3 p.m. CT inside Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The College Football Playoff selection show will air on ESPN on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT.
