The Alabama Crimson Tide will play in the College Football Playoff for the fourth time in the four-year history of the event. The Tide are the No. 4 seed in this year’s bracket, and they’re the only team that’s never missed the field in its still-brief history.
Alabama’s in the Playoff for the 4th time in 4 years. For the first time, it needed help.
This was Bama’s first near miss.
Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
This was by far the closest Bama’s come to missing out. And because Bama’s Bama and will probably never miss the Playoff until the sun swallows the Earth, the best way to analyze Bama’s Playoff history is just to see how close a call it’s been every year.
2014
Bama was the No. 1 seed, and there weren’t many compelling arguments against that. The Tide’s only loss was on the road at a good Ole Miss team. It happened early enough in the season that the Tide were on a pretty good roll — an eight-game win streak with several ranked wins in there — by the time Selection Sunday arrived. One-loss Oregon or unbeaten-but-pretty-iffy Florida State could’ve maybe been the No. 1 seed, but nobody questioned Bama’s Playoff worthiness.
2015
Bama was 12-1 through the SEC Championship Game. The Tide were on a 10-game winning streak, again with a string of ranked wins sprinkled throughout. Clemson went undefeated through the ACC and relegated Bama to the No. 2 seed, but it was again the most non-dramatic thing in the world that Bama made the field.
2016
Bama was 13-0 after the SEC title game. Next.
2017
And this turned out to be Bama’s iffiest Playoff berth yet, even though it wasn’t that iffy. The debate came down to the Tide against Ohio State.
Bama made it over the Buckeyes for two key reasons:
- Ohio State had two losses, and Bama only had one.
- One of Ohio State’s loss was by 31 points to Iowa, an unranked team.
It would’ve been fine to pick either team. The Tide didn’t win their division, let alone their conference. They looked miserable in getting thwacked by Auburn in the Iron Bowl. But they also didn’t have two losses, which put them in league with every other team that’s ever made the Playoff in its history. The Tide got in as the primary beneficiaries of Ohio State’s decision to give up 55 points to Iowa.
Because the world’s a cold and desolate place, Alabama’s going to beat top-seeded Clemson and then win the national title as the fourth seed. When that happens, you’ll be able to thank the Iowa Hawkeyes for making it possible.
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