There’s good news and bad news. The bad news is, for the most part, college football’s regular season is mostly over. The good news is that bowl season is right around the corner, and thanks to the College Football Playoff committee, we know the four teams that will compete for this year’s national championship. Here are the top-four:
- Clemson
- Alabama
- Michigan State
- Oklahoma
None of these should come as too big of a shock. These are the champions from four of the five major conferences, while the fifth major conference champion – Stanford – is the only one with two losses on its schedule.
Clemson is the no-brainer No. 1 team in the nation. While it took home the ACC Championship in somewhat controversial fashion over North Carolina, Dabo Swinney’s Tigers are the nation’s only undefeated teams. It boasts one of the nastiest defenses in the country and a legitimate Heisman Trophy contender in starting quarterback Deshaun Watson.
At the No. 2 spot is Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide. Despite a loss earlier in the year, Alabama has turned itself into a team that relies on the best running back in America in Derrick Henry and the nation’s best defense. The SEC Champions are, almost certainly, the most talented team in the nation, and when everything is clicking, the Tide are really hard to beat.
At third we have the Michigan State Spartans. The champions of the Big Ten are a battle tested, hard-nosed football team. The best way to describe Mark Dantonio’s squad may be “solid but unspectacular,” as the Spartans will never blow you away, but they have the amazing ability to come through in close games. If Connor Cook has the ball in his hands with a chance to win the game, it’s hard to bet against Sparty.
Finally, the hottest team in the country is the No. 4 team in America. Oklahoma had this weekend off due to the Big 12 not having a championship game, but it still won the conference by putting up an insane amount of points on everyone. Outside of a loss to Texas that still makes no sense, the Baker Mayfield-led Sooners have scored at least 30 points a game in every contest this season. If Oklahoma’s two games turn into shootouts, it’s hard to see anyone having the firepower to keep up with Bob Stoops’ crew.
The national semifinal matchups will take place on Thursday, Dec. 31. One matchup is the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, which will put the No. 2 Crimson Tide against the No. 3 Spartans. The other is the Orange Bowl in Miami’s Sun Life Stadium between the No. 1 Tigers and the No. 4 Sooners. Kickoff times for both games will be announced at a later date, but one game will kick off at 4 p.m. EST, while the other will kick off at 8 p.m. EST.
