Ranking which 2020 College Football Playoff teams are most likely to return in 2021

In 2020, Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Notre Dame rolled into the College Football Playoff. Which of those teams is most likely to make it back in 2021?

One big criticism of the College Football Playoff is how predictable it has managed to be.

The same teams seem to make it back year after year. It often feels less like a four-team tournament and more like a coin-flip between Alabama and Clemson.

Of course, that’s not always the case, particularly if you disregard the Crimson Tide and Tigers. There are a bunch of college football teams in 2021 who are looking to upset the status quo by forcing one of last year’s finalists out of the picture.

Which College Football Playoff teams are most likely to make it back?

4. Notre Dame

Notre Dame had three offensive linemen selected in the first three rounds of the 2021 NFL Draft. The Irish have some nice bragging rights on that front, but it’s a double-edged sword. They just lost three starting offensive linemen to the NFL. And that’s not counting undrafted free agent Tommy Kraemer.

Put simply, the Irish will field a young offensive line in 2021 with a new quarterback at the helm of the offense thanks to Ian Book’s graduation.

Already a fringe playoff team, as evidenced by their blowout loss to Alabama, Notre Dame looks like the most likely team to be replaced. It may be Oklahoma. It may be a second team from the SEC like Georgia. It may even be someone from the Pac-12. Someone will probably keep the Irish from the Final Four this year.

3. Ohio State

Ohio State will still be the team to beat in the Big Ten. However, they have some major question marks that make them feel less certain than other powerhouses.

For one, the Buckeyes have to replace Justin Fields at quarterback and they don’t have a clear heir apparent. Jack Miller, C.J. Stroud and Kyle McCord may be great, but they’re unknowns at this stage.

The new quarterback will have to cope with a rebuilt offensive line after Josh Myers and Wyatt Davis left for the NFL.

To add to the difficulty, Ohio State has a tough out-of-conference matchup with Oregon early in the season while facing Michigan on the road to end it.

2. Alabama

Never bet against Nick Saban.

Sure, the Crimson Tide lost Mac Jones, DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle, Najee Harris, Alex Leatherwood and Patrick Surtain II. That matters a lot less when you have proven your ability to reload with a new wave of All-American talents each and every year.

Bryce Young could be better than Jones while John Metchie is hardly a step back in terms of receiving talent.

So why isn’t Alabama the most likely to get back to the playoff? They play in the SEC, which means there will be more hurdles in their way, like road trips to Florida and Texas A&M plus a likely SEC title game matchup with Georgia.

1. Clemson

Alabama may be more likely to repeat as national champions, but you can pencil in Clemson as a playoff team in 2021.

The Tigers get Justyn Ross back healthy to help quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei usher in a new era. Filling Trevor Lawrence’s shoes would be a difficult prospect for any team, but Clemson has every reason to believe in their new quarterback.

Clemson does play Georgia to open the season, but a loss in that game would be significantly easier to explain to the selection committee than one at the end of the year and they’d have the rest of the season to make up for the loss in Week 1.

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