SMU edge out Alabama as 12-team College Football Playoff bracket set

• Oregon given No 1 seed in newly extended format
• Mustangs through despite loss in ACC title game

SMU captured the last open spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff on Sunday, edging Alabama to land in a bracket that placed undefeated Oregon at No 1.

The selection committee preferred the Mustangs (11-2), losers of a heartbreaker in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, who had a far less difficult schedule than Alabama (9-3) of the SEC but, ultimately, still one fewer loss. The Crimson Tide have won the CFP times since the format was introduced in 2014, most recently in the 2020 season.