Picks for the CFP and early bowl games: Oregon rolls, trouble for Washington schools as playoff expansion momentum builds

Welcome to the first installment of the Hotline s postseason picks against the point spread which covers the opening round of the College Football Playoff and notable the pre-Christmas bowl games We were - last week on conference championship weekend Lines are courtesy of vegasinsider com Picks are for entertainment purposes only unless they aren t LAS VEGAS Notre Dame s exclusion from the College Football Playoff and childish reaction to the snub just might have been the spark needed to turn the -team event s long-discussed expansion into a reality If it was we wouldn t be having these conversations ACC commissioner Jim Phillips disclosed Wednesday during the Sports Business Journal s forum on college sports at the Aria Resort and Casino My barometer about what s enough and what s not enough is if you are leaving teams out of the playoff that could win a national championship then you don t have the right number Whether or not you agree with the selection committee s decision to flip Notre Dame and Miami in the final rankings even though both teams were idle there s no doubt the Irish - possess the DNA of a title contender and would have been a betting favorite for the championship Had the CFP featured participants Texas Vanderbilt and BYU would have joined Notre Dame as the last teams in the field All four had a occurrence for inclusion The playoff management committee consisting of the FBS conference commissioners and Notre Dame s athletic director spent majority of of the past year discussing expansion models that could be implemented in time for the season They were unable to reach a consensus before the Dec deadline but agreed with ESPN to extend the negotiating window until Jan The desire to expand has gained steam in the aftermath of the Notre Dame argument which enraged the Irish to the point that athletic director Pete Bevacqua called the weekly rankings release a farce and criticized the ACC for a social media campaign that promoted Miami s situation for inclusion over Notre Dame The Irish are a member of the ACC in all sports except football Phillips emerged from the dispute Tuesday and met with Big commissioner Brett Yormark and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey in Las Vegas The Big Ten s Tony Petitti joined remotely Phillips described the meeting as a great session as we are evaluating various of those options Even with added motivation and eight additional weeks to negotiate the commissioners might struggle to resolve differences that have existed for months Petitti has pushed for an expansion model based on automatic qualifiers AQs while the SEC ACC and Big favor a limited number of AQs and a heavy dose of at-large bids Timing is an issue as well The CFP could expand to teams in time for the season by absolutely adding four games to the opening round and keeping the existing calendar But a -team field which was proposed by the Big Ten but has limited patronage would require an additional round of play and therefore an overhaul of the calendar It would also outcome in the death of conference championship games intense negotiations with ESPN and a mindset change across the sport As a upshot don t be surprised if the commissioners decide to expand to teams in time for next season while making plans for a -team event in Because college football To the picks Season - - Five-star special - Boise State vs Washington LA Bowl Kickoff Dec at p m on ABC Comment The Huskies have been inconsistent on offense this season and played poorly away from home over the past two years If their road persona shows up and the offense struggles they will leave L A with loss No Boise State is fresh off winning the Mountain West championship behind quarterback Maddux Madsen who s decisively healthy after a midseason injury One band will be vastly more motivated and it s the underdog Pick Boise State No Alabama at No Oklahoma CFP Kickoff Dec at p m on ABC Comment A rematch of OU s narrow achievement in Tuscaloosa last month will determine which club advances to face Indiana in the quarterfinals Neither offense has been impressive of late although the Crimson Tide expects tailback Jam Miller to return potentially boosting the running match The Sooners have one of the top defenses in the country which explains a point total that seems like something out of a bygone era Pick Alabama No Miami at No Texas A M CFP Kickoff Dec at a m on ABC Comment The only teams to beat Notre Dame this season collide in what could be the the bulk entertaining challenge of the opening round Don t be fooled by Miami s controversial inclusion The Hurricanes are loaded on the lines of scrimmage possess a bevy of playmakers and have a gifted quarterback Carson Beck with big-game experience That noted the home field is worth more than points for the Aggies Pick Texas A M No Tulane at No Mississippi CFP Kickoff Dec at p m on TNT Comment Another rematch from the regular season albeit with one major difference The Rebels will be without coach Lane Kiffin who left for LSU but has allowed several of his assistants to return to Oxford to coach Mississippi in the playoff The late-September duel was lopsided with Mississippi winning by This should be significantly closer but it s demanding to envision the Green Wave in position for accomplishment in the final minutes Pick Tulane Related Articles CFP rankings Why ESPN won t agree to eliminate the Tuesday shows Big MBB power rankings Arizona Iowa State Houston BYU on top Notre Dame outraged over CFP snub despite system that benefits the Irish CFP winners Miami expansion G teams and losers Big Ten Notre Dame Final Pac- power rankings Boise State vaults SDSU for fake title No James Madison at No Oregon CFP Kickoff Dec at p m on TNT Comment The Ducks absolutely have their CFP home event and it should follow the same plot as plenty of of their non-playoff home games a blowout The Dukes deserved the bid based on the selection process but they are not in Oregon s class Look for Ducks coach Dan Lanning to pull his starters in the third quarter Pick Oregon Washington State vs Utah State Potato Bowl Kickoff Dec at a m on ESPN Comment WSU took a gut punch with the departure of coach Jimmy Rogers to Iowa State but retained various level of continuity by promoting defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit to interim coach Meanwhile Utah State is rolling into the postseason after playing well down the stretch under first-year coach Bronco Mendenhall We like the Pac- newcomers to topple the Pac- mainstays Pick Utah State Cal - at Hawaii Hawaii Bowl Kickoff Dec at p m on ESPN Comment Homecoming for Cal quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele who grew up in Ewa Beach and interim coach Nick Rolovich who coached Hawaii should be an entertaining affair The Rainbow Warriors - should be fully revved but possess a wobbly pass defense the Bears can exploit with Sagapolutele and Jacob De Jesus Rolovich is - since taking over for Justin Wilcox We see - in his future Pick Cal Straight-up winners Boise State Alabama Texas A M Mississippi Oregon Utah State and Cal Five-star special Oregon The CFP matchup with James Madison reminds us of the Fiesta Bowl affair with Liberty two years ago in which the Ducks led - at halftime Send suggestions comments and tips confidentiality guaranteed to wilnerhotline bayareanewsgroup com or call - - Follow me on the social media platform X WilnerHotline