College Football Playoff and Pac-12 legacy bowl projections: How will the committee handle Notre Dame and Miami?

The College Football Playoff selection process with off-the-rails likely took a turn for the routine in the first contest of Championship Saturday as Texas Tech lambasted BYU for the second time and made the committee s task a tad easier The Big blowout secured an opening-round bye for the Red Raiders and ended BYU s hope of climbing into the -team field In their only games against playoff-caliber opponents the double dip against Texas Tech that were effectively CFP auditions the Cougars went - and were outscored - As a upshot the Big will send one crew to the playoff for the second consecutive year Oregon will remain the No seed and host an opening-round contest and the selection committee will ponder one and perhaps two controversial issues before unveiling the field at a m Pacific on Sunday Alabama Notre Dame or Miami In the penultimate rankings disclosed Tuesday evening the ninth-ranked Crimson Tide - were one spot ahead of the Irish - who were two ahead of the Hurricanes - There is only room for two of the three Alabama lost decisively to Georgia in the SEC championship Would the committee authentically punish the SEC s runner-up for losing an extra challenge to a crew it beat on the road earlier in the season Alabama won at Georgia in September But if the Crimson Tide remains in the at-large field the committee must choose the Irish or Hurricanes for the final spot Notre Dame is ranked higher Miami won the head-to-head matchup and they have the same record Would the committee drop Notre Dame out of the field and elevate Miami into the playoff even though both were idle and neither resume changed But if the status quo holds and the Irish make the cut would that send a message to Power Four teams that head-to-head results in non-conference games don t matter a lick Whatever happens there will be outrage Duke or James Madison This only becomes an issue if the unranked Blue Devils defeat Virginia in the ACC championship Saturday evening and force the committee to determine if a five-loss power conference winner deserves the final automatic bid over a second gang from the Group of Five That club would be No James Madison champion of the Sun Belt The other four automatic bids will go to Texas Tech Georgia the Big Ten champ and Tulane which won the American If Virginia wins the ACC is safe The Cavaliers will receive the No seed If Duke wins the ACC could get shut out Other than the final automatic qualifier spot and the last two at-large berths the field is set Our forecast for the playoff and Pac- legacy bowls CFP field First let s group the teams by projected seed tiers No - seeds opening-round byes Ohio State Indiana Georgia and Texas Tech No - seeds home games Oregon Mississippi Texas A M and Oklahoma No - seeds road games Notre Dame Alabama Virginia and Tulane Now the expected pairings Home group listed first No Oklahoma vs No Notre Dame A marquee matchup with one of the nation s best defenses against the powerhouse Irish offense Winner plays No Ohio State No Texas A M vs No Alabama We don t believe the selection committee will drop Alabama from the field for losing to a squad Georgia it already beat Winner plays No Indiana No Mississippi vs No Virginia If Duke wins the ACC watch for Tulane to grab the No seed and either James Madison or the Blue Devils to fill the No slot Winner plays No Georgia No Oregon vs No Tulane The home playoff challenge the Ducks have demanded all season sets them up for a berth in the quarterfinals Winner plays No Texas Tech Pac- legacy bowls Invitations will be extended and matchups revealed after the playoff selections although several pairings are known Here s what to expect for the Pac- legacy teams in order of bowl selection College Football Playoff Oregon The Ducks secured their spot in the CFP when they beat Washington in the regular season finale Autzen Stadium will be bedlam Alamo Bowl USC Although not official the Trojans will make their first appearance in the Alamo Bowl and face an opponent from the Big With nine wins a top- ranking and a coach Lincoln Riley who s from Lubbock the Trojans check every box on the Alamo s list Related Articles Early-signing period winners and losers USC BYU and Oregon roll Colorado struggles mixed results for Cal and Utah WSU football On the Rogers exit Cantwell s response names to consider and another twist of fate on the Palouse Mailbag ABC dominates TV ratings CFP scenarios the ACC nightmare and more Oregon State hires JaMarcus Shephard as new Pac- gains momentum BYU extends Kalani Sitake Parity is dying in the Big and that s good Las Vegas Bowl Utah With wins the Utes could have climbed into the Alamo but instead will return to the site of a - loss to Northwestern two years ago This version against an unannounced Big Ten opponent perhaps Nebraska should have more juice especially if coach Kyle Whittingham reveals in coming days that he s retiring after the challenge Holiday Bowl Arizona The Wildcats finished with a five-game winning streak and expect to be rewarded with a trip to San Diego to face an ACC opponent They last participated in the Holiday in and were embarrassed in a - loss to Nebraska Sun Bowl Arizona State It s not the CFP but El Paso is a respectable destination given the injuries that derailed ASU s drive for another Big title The Sun Devils defeated Florida State in the Sun Bowl in and will face an ACC foe this time as well just not the Seminoles LA Bowl Washington UW s participation in the Sun Bowl last year means it won t be heading to El Paso Assuming the Holiday selects Arizona the Huskies are bound for SoFi Stadium on Dec and will face Mountain West champ Boise State Hawaii Bowl Cal This is official with the Bears having accepted an invitation to face Hawaii in Honolulu on Christmas Eve It doubles as a homecoming for Cal quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele who grew up in Ewa Beach and for interim coach Nick Rolovich who coached Hawaii in the s At-large bowl Washington State The Cougars could participate in a bowl operated by ESPN Events Armed Forces or First Responders or fill a vacancy elsewhere Geography is considered meaning WSU could play in the Potato Bowl or New Mexico Bowl Additionally four teams are not eligible Colorado Oregon State Stanford and UCLA Note This column will be updated following the conclusions of the ACC and Big Ten championships Send suggestions comments and tips confidentiality guaranteed to wilnerhotline bayareanewsgroup com or call - 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