Dec 3, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Florida Gators running back Lamical Perine (22) is brought down by Alabama Crimson Tide defense during the second quarter of the SEC Championship college football game at Georgia Dome. Photo Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
The guessing game is over. But the second-guessing is just starting.
Alabama will be gunning for back-to-back college football championships, and the top-seeded Crimson Tide’s next step will be against the No. 4 Washington Huskies.
The College Football Playoff committee revealed the top four teams on Sunday who will vie for the third CFP title. No. 2 Clemson will meet No. 3 Ohio State in the other national semifinal.
Last year, the Crimson Tide outlasted Clemson 45-40 in the title game. The pairings have set up a potential rematch.
Las Vegas installed Alabama as an early 14-point favorite over Washington. Ohio State is a 3-point favorite over Clemson.
–The “consolation prize” for No. 5 Penn State will be a Jan. 2 date in the Rose Bowl with Southern California. The matchup of the two hottest teams in the country should offer plenty of intrigue.
The Trojans (9-3) got blasted by Alabama in the first game of the season and were sitting at 1-3 after a loss to Utah. Now, USC is riding an eight-game winning streak and is led by redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Darnold, who has thrown 22 touchdowns and only five interceptions since taking over in a loss to Utah.
Penn State (11-2) has a nine-game winning streak and is led by junior quarterback Trace McSorley. He completed 22 of 31 passes for a Big Ten championship game-record 384 yards and four touchdowns in the win over Wisconsin.
Western Michigan, this season’s Cinderella team, and coach P.J. Fleck earned a date in the Cotton Bowl where the Broncos (13-0) will face Wisconsin (10-3).
–The final regular-season Associated Press poll came out Sunday morning several hours before the College Football Playoff rankings and the two ended up with the same top four but in slightly different order.
Alabama (13-0), after its 54-16 blowout of Florida in the Southeastern Conference championship game on Saturday, remained the unanimous No. 1. Ohio State was next at No. 2 followed by Clemson and Washington.
All four teams were selected for the College Football Playoff, but the CFP rankings flipped Ohio State and Clemson, which defeated Virginia Tech on Saturday night in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game, at Nos. 2 and 3.
–Cincinnati coach Tommy Tuberville resigned on Sunday after a disappointing 4-8 campaign, the school announced.
The 62-year-old Tuberville was 29-22 at Cincinnati, including just 1-7 in American Athletic Conference play this season. The Bearcats lost their last five games this season and missed out on a bowl game for the first time since 2010.
Earlier this year, Tuberville received a two-year extension through 2019 but his stock fell quickly as the season went into disarray. There was speculation that Tuberville could be fired on Dec. 7, the day his buyout reduces by $900,000 from $2.4 million to $1.5 million, according to ESPN.
Among the names circulating as possible replacements are Western Kentucky’s Jeff Brohm, Western Michigan’s P.J. Fleck, Air Force’s Troy Calhoun and Troy’s Neal Brown. Ohio State assistant coach Kerry Coombs, a former Cincinnati player, also is expected to receive a look.
Tuberville possesses a 159-99 record in 21 seasons as a college head coach. He has led the programs at Ole Miss, Auburn and Texas Tech prior to becoming Cincinnati’s coach.
