So much for the ACC making a statement in the inaugural College Football Playoff 12-team field.
SMU was drubbed by Penn State, 38-10, while Clemson fell to Texas, 38-24.
That’s two and out for the ACC.
When the College Football Playoff committee released the field, a debate began.
Should SMU deserve a bid despite losing to Clemson in the ACC Championship Game?
Would Clemson prove a tough matchup for the Longhorns?
The answer to both questions is no.
Let’s not just pick on Clemson and SMU; how about Indiana?
The Hoosiers, with their shiny 11-1 record, amassed mainly against a weak schedule, looked like a high school team against Notre Dame.
The final score of 27-17 may have been the most misleading final margin of defeat in college football history.
Indiana trailed by 24 with two minutes left.
The other CFP first-round playoff game was another blowout, with Ohio State pasting Tennessee, 42-17.
The first-round blowouts raise some concerns.
Did the committee fail to select the best at-large teams?
Or with the expanded field of 12, will first-round snoozefest be common?
ABC commentator Kirk Herbstreit said, “Indiana was outclassed. It was not a team that should’ve been on the field when considering the other teams that could’ve been there. Putting a team in because they got 11 wins is a bunch of BS.”
I think Herbstreit may be stretching it a bit; Indiana did win 11 games. However, they were inhaled by Ohio State in a late-season game and on Saturday.
Now, back to the ACC.
A conference struggling to hang onto any relevance in the college football landscape didn’t do itself any favors Saturday.
SMU, as the last team in the CFP over Alabama, trailed Penn State 28-0 at halftime.
The Nittany Lions had two pick-sixes in the opening half.
Down in Texas, Clemson scored the game’s first touchdown, but the Longhorns woke up and held a 28-10 lead at the half.
The Longhorns looked the part of one of the best teams in the country, while Clemson gave us a glimpse of what the oversaturation of the college football postseason might be.
For certain, the ACC took it on the chin on Saturday, but possibly so did the CFP in terms of TV ratings.
The three college playoff games faced competition for eyes from the NFL.
Did college kids get overshadowed by a game between the Houston Texans and the Kansas City Chiefs?
That game kicked off in the second quarter of the Penn State massacre of SMU.
Oh, it gets worse. The minor leagues, err, colleges, later had the Pittsburgh Steelers-Baltimore Ravens clash butting heads with Texas-Clemson.
Saturdays in the fall used to belong to college football.
Used to.
With the expanded playoffs, they face stiff competition from the pros, where they will always be a distant second.
Maybe the previous CFP field of four was perfect.
Three meaningful playoff games in a nicely wrapped package.
The TV ratings may provide that answer.
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