Who did Nick Saban pick to make the College Football Playoff on ‘College GameDay’?

College football has been back for less than 24 hours, and Nick Saban already has his eyes set on the College Football Playoff.

But this year, the former Alabama football coach is looking at the newly adopted 12-team model from a different perspective: analyst.

During Saturday’s Week 0 edition of ESPN’s “College GameDay” in Dublin, Saban made his projections for the College Football Playoff and national championship selection. And to no surprise, Saban’s picks were given with the coach’s in-depth analysis.

This year is the first year that the College Football Playoff field will expand to 12 teams, with each of the Power Four conference champions earning first-round byes. As for the other eight teams in the field, those will be at-large teams selected by the College Football Playoff selection committee. The first release of the CFP rankings is set for Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 6 p.m. CT.

Here’s what you need to know on who Saban picked to make the College Football Playoff and win the national championship on Saturday’s edition of “College GameDay”:

Nick Saban’s College Football Playoff projection

Saban had Alabama in the College Football Playoff as a No. 7 seed and hosting Notre Dame at Bryant-Denny Stadium in the first round, a new change to the playoff format this year. He also picked Liberty, which competes in Conference USA and received 15 votes in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll, to make the CFP as the No. 12 seed.

“I have Georgia, Ohio State, Florida State and Utah. Those are my four bye teams,” Saban said.

Of the 12 teams he picked, Saban said he doesn’t believe those within college football are talking enough of Penn State and LSU, the latter of the two being a former stomping ground for Saban back in the early 2000s.

“I think Penn State’s got a really good team and a great culture. They would have been in the playoff…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/did-nick-saban-pick-college-182724951.html

Author : USA TODAY Sports

Publish date : 2024-08-24 18:27:24

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