College Football Playoff Projections Week 9: No Pac 12 or Big Ten Teams in Top 4
Oct 11, 2014; Waco, TX, USA; A view of the college football playoff national championship trophy before the game between the Baylor Bears and the TCU Horned Frogs at McLane Stadium. The Bears defeat Horned Frogs 61-58. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Sugar Bowl- Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Rose Bowl- Florida State Seminoles vs. Baylor Bears
Yes, we know we’re being anti-climactic by having the exact same projected format we had last week, but there’s nothing else we can do right now. Mississippi State as the top seed would only naturally get the Sugar Bowl because it’s closest to home, and then they could play either of the 1-loss teams. The selection committee said it wants to avoid rematches but not at the expense of seeding if the teams are far apart, but 1-loss Baylor and 1-loss Notre Dame wouldn’t be far apart. Therefore, it would be fine to avoid the rematch and have Notre Dame play Mississippi State at the expense of the seeding. And although that projection is anti-climactic right now, we know a Sugar Bowl with Notre Dame against an SEC champion wouldn’t be.
Florida State, meanwhile, would then obviously get to play Baylor out west in the Rose Bowl, and to be quite honest, that would be exciting as well. Sure, the Seminoles are far more talented, but Baylor has the very advanced scheme that could keep it in the game. Of course, the college football world would rather see a Pac-12 team in there to better represent the regions, especially with one of the games at the Rose Bowl this year. But you can’t force in that which doesn’t belong. Florida State-Baylor would be good enough for college football fans anyway.