Alabama vs. SMU College Football Playoff debate will set massive precedent

SMU gave Clemson everything they had but still came up short in Charlotte. The Mustangs lost only their second game all season on a last-second field goal after tying it up with seconds left in regulation on the previous drive. This has the Ponies' resume looking something like this heading into Selection Sunday: 11-2 overall, 8-0 mark in ACC play, three-point loss in title bout, but no quality wins.

And that right there is the problem... SMU has essentially backed its way into a corner by losing to a three-loss Clemson team with a College Football Playoff spot on the line. Clemson is now an automatic qualifier, likely getting the last AQ spot since both Mountain West champion Boise State and Big 12 champion Arizona State were ranked higher coming in. You know what this means, right?

That means the Selection Committee must decide between ACC runner-up SMU and a 9-3 Alabama team for the last spot into the playoff. We know that Arizona State, Boise State, Clemson, Georgia, Indiana, Ohio State, Oregon, Notre Dame, Penn State, Tennessee and Texas are all making it in. Miami has no shot in, and neither do Ole Miss or South Carolina. It will be Alabama or SMU getting in now.

All we know is the Selection Committee has a chance to set another very dangerous precedent here.

College Football Playoff has a chance to set another terrible precedent

Last year, we saw the College Football Playoff Selection Committee hold a 13-0 ACC champion Florida State team out of the playoff because of a season-ending injury to Seminoles quarterback Jordan Travis. Florida State fell into shambles, lost by 63 points to Georgia in the Orange Bowl, and then preceded to go 2-10 this season. That rubbed so many people the wrong way last bowl season.

Now we are facing an eerily similar discussion. By potentially giving the last spot in to a three-loss Alabama team who suffered three defeats in conference play to Oklahoma, Tennessee and Vanderbilt, the Selection Committee would be completely devaluing playing for a conference championship. In short, SMU would be punished for playing in theirs, just like Georgia was last season...

Because the College Football Playoff is an ESPN product, and the last spot in will be between two teams to play exclusively on Disney properties in ACC runner-up SMU and SEC contender Alabama, it almost feels like they will take the more intriguing helmet to boost ratings. The argument may be that Alabama could actually win a playoff game. I would argue that SMU is just as capable of doing that...

In the first year of the 12-team playoff, we already have mass dissension when it comes to automatic qualifiers getting doubly boosted with incredibly advantageous seeding. Let's try and figure out how to rectify that in the next year or so. The last thing we need now is for even more playoff expansion because the Selection Committee decided to completely devalue conference championships again.

SMU should be the last team into the playoff field, but I am afraid that Alabama will be getting in now.