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Paul Finebaum declares one Power 5 conference ‘dead’ for College Football Playoff
By Michael Daly
Published:
Paul Finebaum pronounced the Pac-12 “dead” for the College Football Playoff following a difficult Week 1.
The Pac-12 had 2 marquee matchups against the SEC and the conference fell short in both games. The Pac-12’s hopes of sending a team to the Playoff depended upon the outcome of Week 1.
Utah fell to an unranked Florida, 29-26, in Gainesville. Utah needed to win that game in order to stay alive in the Playoff pursuit and with the loss, the Playoff picture became more difficult for Utah.
The other game that saw a Pac-12 team likely lose out on the Playoff was Oregon’s blowout loss to Georgia. Oregon lost to Georgia by 46 points in a neutral site game in Atlanta. The 2 losses set back the conference and Finebaum believed that the Pac-12 would not rebound:
“I think you can declare the Pac-12 dead – or the Pac-10, whatever it is these days. They had the best shot, they had Utah playing Florida and remember: Florida fired a coach last year and they brought in a guy from Lafayette. Florida was supposed to lose this game, and if Utah can’t win on the road, I don’t think they’ll be a qualifier… To me, it’s over for the Pac-12,” Finebaum said during Monday’s Get Up broadcast on ESPN.
USC and Oregon State won key home games against Rice and Boise State. If Finebaum’s prediction is true, the Pac-12 will miss the Playoff for the 6th consecutive year. The last Pac-12 team to reach the Playoff was Washington in 2016.