When the Alabama Crimson Tide were blown out in the SEC Championship Game against Georgia, it seemed as if they were going to be left out of the College Football Playoff. On Selection Sunday, the committee shocked everyone keeping Alabama in the field while vaulting Miami ahead of Notre Dame in a shocking twist.
The decision was a massive shock as Notre Dame had rattled off 10 straight wins while Alabama limped to the finish line losing 2 of their final 4 games while struggling against an Auburn team that fired it's head coach.
Alabama's terrible start proves Notre Dame belonged in the Playoff
The Crimson Tide is currently facing the Oklahoma Sooners in Norman, and the way this game has started proves that Alabama didn't belong in the field. In the 1st quarter, Alabama went 3-and-out, setting Oklahoma up to take an early 7-0 lead. When Alabama stalled out on offense again, a missed tackle by the Crimson Tide allowed Oklahoma to take a 10-0 lead into the second quarter.
When Oklahoma got the ball in the second quarter, John Mateer found a wide open Isaiah Sategna to take a 17-0 lead over Alabama.
Oklahoma OC Ben Arbuckle is in his freaking bag right now against Alabama. Sick design to get Isaiah Sategna III wide open.
— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) December 20, 2025
And we cash my favorite TD bet of the game for @SBRReview (+135) pic.twitter.com/s48IfQSTib
The Crimson Tide has started to show signs of life as Ty Simpson found Lotzeir Brooks to get Alabama on the board before the defense was finally able to slow the Sooners, before a fumbled punt snap allowed Alabama to gain short field.
While Alabama could easily come back and win the game, it's clear that Notre Dame was better than both of these teams. An Oklahoma team with an abysmal offense has been able to move the ball all night while the Sooners continue to make some of the mistakes that keep them from being great.
Notre Dame showed down the stretch of the season that they were a far better team than the group we saw lose two close games to playoff teams. Next year, the College Football Playoff committee is going to need to reconsider how they pick teams as Notre Dame would clearly beat half of the Playoff field if the games were played today.