- Notre Dame was edged out for one of the final at-large spots despite winning its last 10 games of the season.
- BYU was the only Power Four conference team with at least 11 wins to not make the playoff bracket.
- Despite winning a Power Four conference championship, 8-5 Duke was not selected for the playoff field.
The College Football Playoff is set, and it’s been determined which 12 teams have a shot at winning a national championship − but not everyone is happy.
Throughout the season, teams and fans have been making the case about which schools should be in the field. Unfortunately, not everyone with an argument gets validation. The selection committee either thought a resume wasn’t strong enough or someone else was a better fit. Now instead of making the bracket, teams that just missed out have to instead play for a typical bowl game.
That shouldn’t make those teams on the outside feel like they weren’t worthy. No matter how big or small the College Football Playoff is, there’s going to be some teams that felt like they should’ve been in and had a real good argument. That’s no different this season.
Here are the teams that were snubbed from making the College Football Playoff.
Notre Dame
There isn’t a team that feels like it got hard done more than Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish were in a mix for the final two at-large spots with Alabama and Miami, and they got the short end of the stick.
It all points to the season-opening loss Notre Dame suffered against Miami. There’s no argument that the head-to-head matters, but how it got to the point is the frustrating part. Notre Dame was ranked ahead of Miami for several weeks and seemed to be in, but the Hurricanes leaped over the Fighting Irish on the final and all important ranking with neither playing.
Miami had worse losses compared to Notre Dame, with the team left out losing to two playoff opponents. After starting 0-2, the Fighting Irish cruised past the rest of its schedule with 10 consecutive wins, all of them by double-digits. What also might have hurt was only one of those wins was a ranked victory, a defeat of Southern California.
The Fighting Irish were the national runner-up last season and looked like a team that could get there once again, but instead they won’t get a chance.
Brigham Young
Eight Power Four conference teams won at least 11 games this season. Brigham Young is the only one of those that didn’t make the field, the second year in row the Cougars won double-digit games and didn’t qualify.
Ahead of the season, the selection committee introduced new criteria where teams wouldn’t be penalized heavily for losing to high-quality opponents. BYU only had two losses, both of which came against No. 4 seed Texas Tech, including in the Big 12 title game. With no bad losses, it also had some notable wins against ranked teams in Utah and Arizona.
Texas
The preseason No. 1 team in the country won’t be in the playoff field. The Longhorns record of 9-3 doesn’t look playoff-worthy, but how they obtained the record gives them a case to make it.
It starts with the losses. Texas lost the season opener to Ohio State and Georgia, both teams that got first-round byes. The major stain was the road loss it suffered against a Florida team that finished 4-8. However, the Longhorns did have impressive wins, notably against rivals Oklahoma and Texas A&M, which both made the playoff field. There’s also the third ranked win it secured when they outplayed Vanderbilt, all victories against top 15 opponents. Not wins were all the same though, as Texas had shaky overtimes wins against Kentucky and Mississippi State.
It’s hard to justify a three-loss team getting an at-large spot, but if there was ever a time for one to make it, Texas would get the nod after having some of the best wins in the country.
Vanderbilt
The most successful season in Vanderbilt history ends just short of a playoff appearance. The Commodores achieved their first 10-win campaign and were one of six SEC teams to have double-digit wins on the season. Yet, Vanderbilt is the only one of that group to not make the bracket.
Vanderbilt took care of business when it had to, butt what really hurt was those notable victories turned out to not be so impressive. The Commodores beat South Carolina, LSU, Missouri and Tennessee when they were all ranked, but they all fell out of the polls by the time the regular season ended. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt lost to the teams it played and did finish ranked in Alabama and Texas.
Beating the Crimson Tide and Longhorns likely would’ve cemented a playoff bid, but Vanderbilt fell victim its wins not holding up their worth, something that wasn’t really its fault. A magical season for a team that hasn’t had many of them ends in a ‘what if.’
Duke
Should a team with five losses make the playoff? No, but the Blue Devils won a Power Four conference championship, and that will be something Duke will continue to say is the reason they should be in.
Duke’s main issue was James Madison got in over them. Just by eye test, it’s obvious the 12-1 Dukes got in over the 8-5 Blue Devils, and it doesn’t help the ACC champion lost to two Group of Five teams – Tulane and Connecticut. However, Duke’s argument is quality of opponents. Seven of their wins came against Power Four opponents, while James Madison had none, with its only opportunity a 28-14 loss to Louisville. According to ESPN’s strength of schedule, Duke had the the 74th toughest schedule, while James Madison is 123rd out of 136 FBS teams.
The Blue Devils do have an actual argument, but the selection committee was going to have a tough time justifying Duke making the field.