About This Year's College Football Playoffs Selections

Being a Floridian for almost my entire life, I have been a supporter of Florida college football teams since I began to follow the sport in 1968 when I was 11 going on 12 years old.  Then I liked Miami, Florida and Florida State and over the years continued to root for them...whenever they weren't playing against each other, that is. Since I moved in '77 to Gainesville, home of the University of Florida, I naturally became primarily a Gators fan but still supported the other two...unlike many of my fellow Gators.  So, when the college football playoff selection committee earlier today snubbed 13-0 Florida State, winner of the major Atlantic Coast Conference championship, from the four-team championship series in favor of two one-loss schools Texas and Alabama, I was disappointed.  FSU's star quarterback Jordan Travis had broken his leg in their next-to-last regular season game, and head coach Mike Norvell had toned down the high-flying explosive offense in favor of ball-control running and a strong defense for the last two contests.  The committee evidently saw Travis as an indispensable part of Florida State and thought his absence diminished them, thus opening the way ultimately for Alabama with Texas already "in" since they defeated the Crimson Tide at the season's start.  Alabama, for their part, defeated #1 ranked Georgia in their Southeastern Conference championship game, enabling them to claim a legitimate spot in the playoffs.  So, the seedings are now 1-Michigan, 2-Washington, 3-Texas, and 4-Alabama.  The semifinals will take place on New Year's Day with Michigan playing Alabama in the Rose Bowl and Washington against Texas in the Sugar Bowl.  Unhappy FSU is in the Orange Bowl on December 30th against equally unhappy Georgia.  I just wish that Oregon had hung on against Washington in their conference championship game...then I think Florida State would have made the playoffs.  Of the four teams that made it, I'm partial to Alabama, don't care much who wins between Washington and Texas, and will root against Michigan regardless.  Personally, I think Alabama's a better team than Michigan and will be surprised if they don't "upset" them...