Washington gets playoffs nod over Penn State

However, the Huskies suffered only one blemish – a loss to Southern Cal – on its way to a Pac-12 championship on the arm of quarterback Jake Browning, who has thrown for 3,280 yards and 42 touchdowns or an offense that ranks No. 22 in the nation.

The Buckeyes’ only loss came at No. 5 Penn State, 24-21, in a second consecutive nationally-televised night game on the road after playing at Wisconsin the previous week.

“The strength of schedule of Washington has been a concern for this selection committee”, chairman Kirby Hocutt said.

The two teams have experienced quarterbacks.

Last season, Alabama blanked the Michigan State Spartans 38-0 in the playoff semifinals before edging the Clemson Tigers 45-40 to win Saban’s fourth national championship with the Crimson Tide. We pick the best teams.

Missing the Big Ten title game, did it hurt or help Ohio State’s playoff prep?

Alabama was ranked No. 1, to no one’s surprise.

Ohio State and Clemson have played twice before, both in bowl games. So If Clemson does these 2 things they will win this game.

“Blue collar, don’t stop, just a really good football team”, Guillermo said of Ohio State.

Granted, Ohio State owns three wins this season against teams that finished in the top 10 – Oklahoma, Michigan and Wisconsin.

“I think because of Washington’s strength of schedule, their margin for error was very slim”, Hocutt said. Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Washington will face off in the semifinals, which will be held December 31.

The Buckeyes again missed out on the conference title game this season and are headed back to the Fiesta Bowl.

By the time the initial rush of money slowed, the Crimson Tide were a 14.5-point favorite. If the Sooners had played only Houston or Ohio State, instead of both, would OU be in the playoff?

The Trojans will face the Big Ten champions on January 2 in the 103rd edition of the Granddaddy of Them All. The matchup of the two hottest teams in the country should offer plenty of intrigue.

Left on the outside, like a three year old peering longingly into a toy-filled decorated downtown Macy’s Christmas window is; Penn State. Braxton Miller led the Buckeyes with 269 total yards and four touchdowns (two rushing; two passing). Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.

Instead Penn State (ranked fifth), MI (sixth) and Wisconsin (eighth) are on the outside, but that is not such a bad thing.

The Sugar Bowl pits Big 12 champion Oklahoma against Auburn. The Tide has rolled over basically everyone, leading them to a flawless 13-0 record including their third straight SEC championship as they stomped over Florida 54-16. The conference champion in 2014 (Ohio State) and 2015 (Michigan State) reached the national semifinals.

The group has been so formidable that it has only allowed two touchdowns in the final five games – both of those scores coming in the SEC Championship Game against the Gators.

One-loss sanctity is upheld. Penn State’s defense will have its own hands full against USC’s offense, which is dotted with NFL-caliber talent at almost every position — including top receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, 1,000-yard tailback Ronald Jones II and a powerful offensive line.

Clemson entered last year’s playoff bidding for 15-0, and had a chance to finish with that record — but lost the title game to the Crimson Tide. Or to agree that one-loss Clemson should rise to the second slot after defeating Virginia Tech for the Atlantic Coast Conference title.

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney cautioned that more postseason would lessen the value of the regular season and that adding another round would require eliminating other games. Cardinal quarterback Lamar Jackson is still the front-runner and would be the first Heisman victor since Johnny Manziel in 2012 to not play in either the playoff or the BCS championship. The Hokies finished 9-4 under first-year coach Justin Fuente.