Miami received wide-ranging national support after being the first team out of the playoff in the final rankings released before the official bracket comes out on Sunday. As expected the final spot came down to Alabama and Miami. Alabama is 11th in the College Football Playoff rankings and Miami is 12th.
CFP Committee Chair Warde Manuel stated Alabama's 3-1 record versus their top 25 and Miami being 0-1 made a difference in the Crimson Tide being ranked ahead of the Hurricanes. What wasn't mentioned is that Alabama lost by 21 to 6-6 Oklahoma and at 6-6 Vanderbilt as well as to Tennessee.
Alabama defeated Georgia and South Carolina who are both in the top 15 in the CFP rankings. Alabama's three losses were by 33 points. Miami's two defeats were by nine. The difference for Alabama being ranked was likely in their wins. Miami does not have a win over a team in the CFP top 25.
Miami does have a win over Louisville who is 13th in the ESPN Football Power Index. Georgia is fifth in the FPI, Alabama fourth, Georgia fifth, Tennessee seventh, Miami 11th and South Carolina 14th among the aforementioned teams. It was likely a tight call between Alabama and Miami in the CFP rankings.
The comments and social media posts range from athletic administrators to media to former players. Some of the media are national and neutral and others are in South Florida who are more biased towards Miami. The consensus is that Miami belongs in the College Football Playoff over Alabama.
Alabama's loss to Oklahoma was by 21 points and occurred later in the season than their impressive wins. It appears that teams outside of the Big Ten and SEC can only afford to lose one game to secure a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff. This marks the second consecutive year that the CFP committee has snubbed an ACC team.