Blake Sims (6) was on the money in Bama's dominating win over Missouri (John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports)
Overlooked in the excitement of Alabama being the No. 1 team in the College Football Playoff rankings is the fact that 12 of 14 Southeastern Conference teams will be playing in bowl games this season.
Of course, the big one is going to be in the Sugar Bowl where Alabama will play Ohio State in a semi-final playoff matchup — a classic pairing of a powerful offense (the Buckeyes) meeting a rock-solid defense (the Crimson Tide).
But from a conference standpoint having 12 bowl-eligible teams means those 12 teams get an additional 15 days of practice time, which coaches always think is the biggest advantage of being a bowl team. But the biggest thing to the SEC athletic directors is that the bowl payoffs will be jacked up to record levels come next spring when the spoils of the entire year will be divided up and the checks handed out to the individual schools.
This is the first year of the playoff and of bowls being assigned and it worked out well for the SEC.
“The new Pool of Six bowl process gives us the best opportunity to address several issues that impact SEC fans, including the creation of intriguing matchups, the accommodation of travel for fans and a variety of assignments to help prevent repetitive postseason destinations,” said SEC Commissioner Mike Slive.
“We took into account the preferences expressed to us by the participating teams and had conversations with our bowl partners to create a compelling lineup of bowl games featuring SEC teams.”
Many fans were not happy that Ohio State was included in the four-team playoff in view of the Buckeyes’ light schedule, but the Buckeyes’ 59-0 thrashing of Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game certainly seemed to justify Ohio State’s inclusion in the party.
There was little doubt that Alabama would be the No. 1 seed in the playoff after the Crimson Tide thumped Missouri 42-13 in the SEC title game. Alabama’s defense held Missouri’s ground game in check and Blake Sims, Amari Cooper and Derrick Henry sparked the offense. Sims is making a habit of finishing games strong for Alabama. He did it in the second half against Auburn and he led Alabama on three touchdown drives in the fourth quarter against Missouri.
For a player who did not even win the starting job until the final scrimmage before the season started, Sims has proven to be a winner in the same mold as AJ McCarron — with a flair for late dramatics.
The game with Ohio State will decide who will play the winner of the Florida State-Oregon game for the national championship. But there is more on the line with the Big Ten vs. SEC matchup. The Big Ten has resented the idea that the Southeastern Conference is a stronger conference, which, of course is based on the SEC’s recent success in winning national championships. The Big Ten also had a pretty good bowl season landing 10 teams in postseason play. Rest assured that fans of each conference will keep up with how each league fares in the bowl season.
There will be other SEC vs. Big Ten bowl games—Auburn vs. Wisconsin in the Outback Bowl, Missouri will play Minnesota in the Citrus Bowl and Tennessee will face Iowa in the Tax Slayer Bowl. But most eyes will be on the Alabama-Ohio State game as a measuring stick since both are their conference champions.
For Alabama, it has grown accustomed to playing for titles. Under Nick Saban, the Crimson Tide has been in the national championship picture almost every year since he set foot in Tuscaloosa. They haven’t won it since 2012, which seems like a drought of epic proportions to Alabama fans.
To get there this year the Tide will have to handle the Big Ten champion. If Alabama advances, the Tide will meet with the Pac-12 champion or an undefeated ACC champion. And despite the road to the national championship being more complicated for Alabama, it’s also more complicated for any team that eventually wins the new playoff trophy.
