Alabama made this year's College Football Playoff after getting trounced in the SEC Championship Game this weekend, and former Notre Dame star quarterback Joe Theismann is wondering how the committee got things "so wrong."
Notre Dame lost its first two games of the season against Miami and Texas A&M, both of which are in the playoffs, by a combined four points. The Irish went on to win their next 10 games. Alabama lost its season opener to Florida State in a blowout, lost to playoff team Oklahoma late in the season by two points and lost by 21 to Georgia, another playoff team, in the SEC Championship.
In remarks given to Fox News Digital, Theismann said the Crimson Tide's inclusion over his Irish "makes no sense."
"How could they be so wrong?" he wondered. "I just find it hard to believe that you're gonna put a three-loss team in the playoffs. Miami going in? All right. Notre Dame should've been in. Now all of a sudden you're gonna turn the conversation into head-to-head competition in the first game of the year? Well, what about Alabama being beat by Florida State the first game of the year? Did nobody bring that up? Was that not part of the conversation? I just think it's so wrong."
"I feel like I'm a person who tries to really be objective when it comes to analyzing situations," Theismann added. "Alabama being in this makes no sense."
The former quarterback also took to X to express his disappointment, a sentiment echoed by Notre Dame fans.
"Disappointed doesn't even begin to explain my feelings about the Selection Committees decision to leave Notre Dame out of the CFP. It's just flat wrong."
Alabama will kick off against Oklahoma in its opening-round game on Friday, December 19, at 7 p.m.
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