With new 12-team playoff looming, this season already feels different. Here are 7 things we like so far

About 12 million people watched Saturday’s Georgia-Alabama thriller, a reminder that college football continues to grow its already extreme popularity. And, no, the addition of a 12-team playoff wasn’t going to ruin the regular season.

Or even turn a Dawgs-Tide game into Jacksonville at Carolina.

In fact, the stakes for this game were no different than for a four-team playoff, or even the old BCS. Neither team was going to be eliminated from the national championship chase due to a September loss — back in 2011, LSU beat Alabama in a November game only to see the Crimson Tide again, and lose this time, in the BCS title game. That was the era of a two-team “playoff.”

Still, the season is different. And it will be different. Not every single result matters, but more results will matter more. One month in and you can already see some of it and anticipate how the year will play out with the new expansive playoff.

Here’s what we like so far …

There is still a tightrope to walk

There was a lot of chatter after Alabama’s 41-34 victory that both teams will be in the playoff anyway, but in reality, are we sure? To believe that is to ignore all sorts of possibilities that can befall a team, including injuries. The future is never fully predicted.

As for Georgia, it’s truly uncertain. The Bulldogs still have eight games to play, including at No. 1 Texas, at Ole Miss and against Tennessee at home. This is a Georgia team that nearly lost to Kentucky. Losing all three of those games is not out of the question, leaving them 8-4 and likely out. Drop two and it gets dicey, although an opening-game blowout of Clemson should help considerably.

The point is, each game still matters a great deal. Even for the team that won two of the last three national titles and entered the season ranked No. 1 overall.

The four power…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-10-01 21:43:28

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