Georgia’s recent placement at No. 12 in the College Football Playoff rankings has ignited strong reactions from the college football world.
Many argue that the Bulldogs’ challenging schedule and close losses warrant a much higher standing.
Among the critics, ESPN’s Rece Davis and Paul Finebaum were notably vocal, questioning the selection committee’s methodology and potential consequences for the future of college football.
Davis expressed concern over what Georgia’s exclusion from the playoffs could imply for the importance of schedule strength.
He cautioned that leaving Georgia out, despite its demanding schedule and impressive victories, could set a damaging precedent.
“If (Georgia) were to lose a close game to Tennessee, then you would start to look at the entire strength of schedule. A lot of that is because of how their conference draw came out. That’s just the luck of the draw,” Davis began.
“But they also played Clemson, and the one thing I think, if you leave a team like Georgia out with a marquee win, like it has against Texas, a near miss at Alabama, and then Tennessee…. if you leave Georgia out completely, are you not incentivizing, then, teams saying ‘well I’m going to make my schedule as easy as possible.”’ They may not control the conference portion of it.”
Georgia’s schedule has indeed been a brutal one, with the Bulldogs facing one of the toughest slates in the entire country.
They’ve suffered two losses – one in heartbreaking fashion on the road against Alabama and another also on the road against a surging Ole Miss team that looks as dangerous as anyone in the country.
Finebaum also shared his frustration on ESPN’s First Take, lambasting the CFP committee’s decision and overall mindset.
“You have to start by saying that what the committee said last night was a complete travesty,” Finebaum said earlier this week. “They sit in a room at a five-star resort ordering caviar and champagne and sit around and talk about college football when they have 4,000 members to look at. So, I don’t know how they came up with these numbers.”
The point that both Davis and Finebaum made is certainly understandable.
Wins and losses have to matter. Having said that, there’s not a soul alive that doesn’t think Georgia is a playoff-caliber team.
Again, wins and losses matter. They have to. However, the Bulldogs’ strength of schedule has to play a bigger factor in the committee’s selection process.
Otherwise, as Davis stated, teams across the country will be incentivized to schedule more cupcakes and avoid testing themselves against other big boys. (This is also known as “The Duke Basketball Model.”)
What are your thoughts on the points made by Davis and Finebaum???
