College Football Playoff: What chaos does UCF need to reach the Top 4?

Step 6: Alabama crushes Georgia for the SEC title

It almost seems counterproductive to think that Alabama dominating Georgia would improve the situation for UCF. An Alabama loss would eliminate the Crimson Tide from the list of undefeated teams, after all.

But last year, two SEC schools made it to the College Football Playoff. Being the only undefeated team didn’t help the Knights last year in the battle to get to the top four, after all. And if Georgia were to repeat as SEC champions ahead of the Crimson Tide, especially in a close win, there is a very real chance that the committee would put both of them into the four-team field.

If Alabama blows out the Bulldogs, though, there will be less incentive to put a two-loss Bulldogs team into the College Football Playoff that failed to win their conference championship. If the game finishes in a close result in Alabama’s favor, they could ostensibly decide to keep Georgia in the picture — especially if everything chaotic transpires in the other conferences.

Should Alabama win by three or more touchdowns, however, it will confirm the gulf between Alabama and the rest of the SEC, and for that matter, everyone else. That will be enough to eliminate the possibility of the league putting two teams into the playoff picture for a second consecutive year.