Alabama Football: Selection Committee needs to listen to Urban Meyer

Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Many Alabama football fans view Urban Meyer negatively. It goes back to his tenure at the University of Florida. Thinking back, I cannot recall a single time I agreed with anything Meyer has ever said.

I’m getting a ‘never say never’ lesson this week. Urban Meyer is 100% correct on at least one thing he said. For Alabama football fans it is a big thing. Talking to On3 this week, Meyer stated,

"To say Alabama, Texas, and Oregon are not as good as anyone in the country right now — you’re mistaken. Because you push play and you watch the film, the All-22 against who they play and the style of offense, defense, and the athletes on the field. Those three teams, to me, to say they’re not in the top four, you’re mistaken."

Meyer admitted the CFB Playoff Selection Committee has a difficult task. He also expressed confidence that in the end, the Selection Committee will get the rankings correct.

Alabama Football One of Four-Best Teams

If Meyer is correct on the committee and if the Alabama Crimson Tide, the Texas Longhorns and the Oregon Ducks win out, those three teams in the Playoff would mean considerable havoc had occurred. It would mean four of the currently five, undefeated contenders would have lost at least one game.

If the regular season and championship Saturday play out instead, with two undefeated Power Five Champions, would only one of them make the final four, in favor of the Crimson Tide, Longhorns and Ducks? No one, including Meyer, knows the answer now.

Following Meyer’s advice might be easier for the Selection Committee to follow if the current group embraced the original, primary goal of a Selection Committee. That goal was simple; determine college football’s four best teams each season.

It did not take long, as elite programs dominated Playoff fields, for that original goal to receive little more than lip service. The rapid success of the Playoff product fueled demands for inclusion by more teams and eventually led to the 12-team format that begins with the 2024 college football season.

Simply selecting the ‘best teams’ got lost along the way. The current situation is an undefeated Power Five Champion, who experts do not believe is as good as one or more one-loss teams, could well be selected for the final four.

Alabama football fans hope the Selection Committee heard Urban Meyer. If they did not or choose to ignore him, Alabama, as a one-loss SEC Champion is not guaranteed to make the final four.

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