ACC Would Be Under Intense Glare Once Again For Missing Out On CFP

What could take place later this week and what took place with Florida State in 2023 provide a set of different circumstances that nonetheless place the ACC under a spotlight that shines bright and ugly. Specifically, the highest ranked conference member could fail to make the playoff cut both years. It was one thing with the Seminoles in a four-team field and it is quite something else with the current 12-team field.

While not claiming to have the solution, Miami athletic director Dan Radakovich noted there must be a way for the ACC to do a better job when it comes to tiebreaker scenarios. Certainly, something that can improve upon drilling down to the fifth tiebreaker (combined win percentage of conference opponents) to decide which among five two-loss teams would face Virginia, the only team with one league loss, in Saturday evening’s conference championship game in Charlotte.

Had the ‘Canes been a couple of spots higher in the CFP ranking the past few weeks instead of serving placeholder for a conference champ (ACC or G5) at No. 12, they could have bypassed the championship game while waiting to find out who they would play as an at-large. That is another point of contention for two-loss Miami, which opened the season by defeating two-loss Notre Dame, which checks in at No. 10. The Hurricanes and Fighting Irish do not have any games remaining. Presumably, the teams will remain right where they are, though the committee seems to allow for movement even for teams that are idle on championship weekend. We will find out Sunday (Noon ET, ESPN) when the final ranking is revealed.

Radakovich was a member of the first playoff committee in 2014 and served four years, so he certainly appreciates the committee’s responsibilities in weighing one team against the other.

Miami’s opportunity, though far from guaranteed, of attaining one of seven at-large berths would be for No. 9 Alabama to lose big against No. 4 Georgia in the SEC championship game and BYU, currently the first team out at No. 11, to lose to No. 4 Texas Tech in the Big 12 championship game. That could open the door for the Hurricanes to move into the playoff. A close loss by ‘Bama, though, will not necessarily bump the Tide out of the playoff.

Duke dilemma

Remember, it is the five highest ranked conference champs that are guaranteed a seat at the playoff table. Not the four power conference champs plus one from the group of non-power conferences. That is why Duke should be rooting hard for 8-4 Troy to knock off 11-1 and No. 25 James Madison in the Sun Belt championship Friday night, which would likely clear a playoff path for the Blue Devils should they get past UVA.

Rooting interests in the ACC office in Charlotte, however, are likely directed toward Virginia so that an embarrassment can be avoided. Manny Diaz’s Blue Devils are a middling 7-5 overall, though won the tiebreaker with four other teams (Miami, SMU, Georgia Tech, Pitt) with 6-2 conference records. As an unranked team, it would seem even a conference championship win over the Cavaliers, which defeated Duke (34-17) in Durham on November 15, would not be nearly enough to lift a five-loss team into the playoff.

One of the two playoff spots that needs to be filled, No. 11 or 12, will be occupied by either No. 20 Tulane or No. 21 North Texas, who face each other in Friday evening’s American Conference championship game. With JMU also ranked, it is hard to imagine the Dukes falling out of the playoff picture by defeating Troy to win the Sun Belt. That is the barrier working against the ACC should Duke prevail.

Revisiting 2023

In the final year of the four-team playoff, the 2023 Seminoles ran the table in the regular season and were No. 4 in the penultimate College Football Playoff ranking. Mike Norvell’s team improved to 13-0 after defeating No. 14 Louisville, 16-6, in the ACC championship game, and slipped to No. 5 and out of the playoff picture. Alabama, which defeated No. 1 Georgia in the SEC championship game to improve to 12-1, bypassed the ‘Noles into the No. 4 spot.

In the eyes of the playoff committee, Florida State was on shaky ground the moment quarterback Jordan Travis was injured during a 58-13 romp against FCS member North Alabama. The No. 4 Seminoles improved to 11-0, though slipped to No. 5. Washington, which moved up to No. 4 after defeating No. 10 Oregon State on the road.

FSU, with backup quarterback Tate Rodemaker, staged a fourth quarter rally in the Swamp to defeat rival Florida, 24-15, to close the regular season. The ‘Noles climbed back No. 4, though merely kept the spot warm for a week until Crimson Tide took it over following the 297^th and final victory of Nick Saban’s career. Undefeated Florida State was left out.

What followed was a mess of the highest order. FSU, already without Travis, who finished fifth in Heisman voting despite missing multiple games, had more than 20 opt-outs prior to a 63-3 loss to Georgia in the Orange Bowl. The ‘Noles have yet to recover.

The playoff snub was the boiling point for FSU, which had been expressing its displeasure with the ACC for some time with issues that included, but certainly not limited to, exit fees. The suit, which would also involve Clemson, was settled earlier this year.