Clemson secures No. 2 seed, will face No. 3 Notre Dame in Cotton Bowl
The College Football Playoff will feature an Orange Bowl matchup between No. 1 Alabama and No. 4 Oklahoma while No. 2 Clemson will face No. 3 Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl on December 29, kickoff is set for 4:00.
It will be Clemson’s first visit to the Cotton Bowl since 1940, the program’s first-ever bowl bid when the Tigers knocked off Boston College 6-3. That year, Head Coach Jess Neely’s Tigers completed a 9-1 campaign. The victory was a landmark one for Clemson, as in addition to being the program’s first bowl game, it represented the school’s first win against a Top 20 team.
The Tigers opened as 11.5-point favorites over Notre Dame while Alabama enters as a 14-point favorite over Oklahoma.
Coming off of their 42-10 win over Pitt, Clemson secured their fourth consecutive trip to the playoff. The Tigers have faced Alabama each of the last three seasons and would hook up with the Crimson Tide again if both teams advance to the championship game held in Santa Clara, California on January 7th.
Georgia dropped just one spot after losing to Alabama in the SEC Championship yesterday, but the 11-2 Bulldogs stayed ahead of a one-loss Big 10 Champion Ohio State team.
Dabo Swinney joined the selection show and said the Tigers worked hard to get back in the College Football Playoff.
“We are just excited to be in the playoffs. This is what we work for all year long. This is a big deal. We are ready to go to Dallas. I’ve never been to the Cotton Bowl. I’m looking forward to it.
As for facing Notre Dame, Swinney noted that they have seen the Fighting Irish on film several times.
“We’ve had a couple of common opponents. Had a chance to study them a little bit getting ready for Pitt. We are looking forward to a great matchup. We have an unbelievable amount of respect for them.
Before the interview was done, Swinney popped on a cowboy hat in honor of heading out west.
“Every year is a new journey. Nothing carries over, you have to prove it and earn it every year. Even if we would have gotten beat last night, we would have been here to celebrate our year.”
2018
Week 1: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 LSU, #4 Notre Dame
Week 2: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Notre Dame, #4 Michigan
Week 3: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Notre Dame, #4 Michigan
Week 4: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Notre Dame, #4 Michigan
Week 5: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Notre Dame, #4 Georgia
Selection Day: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Notre Dame, #4 Oklahoma
2017
Week 1: #1 Georgia, #2 Alabama, #3 Notre Dame, #4 Clemson
Week 2: #1 Georgia, #2 Alabama, #3 Notre Dame, #4 Clemson
Week 3: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Miami, #4 Oklahoma
Week 4: #1 Alabama, #2 Miami, #3 Clemson, #4 Oklahoma
Week 5: #1 Clemson, #2 Auburn, #3 Oklahoma, #4 Wisconsin
Selection Day: #1 Clemson, #2 Oklahoma, #3 Georgia, #4 Alabama
2016
Week 1: #1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Michigan, #4 Texas A&M
Week 2:#1 Alabama, #2 Clemson, #3 Michigan, #4 Washington
Week 3: #1 Alabama, #2 Ohio State, #3 Michigan, #4 Clemson
Week 4: #1 Alabama, #2 Ohio State, #3 Michigan, #4 Clemson
Selection Day: #1 Alabama, #2 Ohio State, #3 Clemson, #4 Washington
2015
Week 1: #1 Clemson, #2 LSU, #3 Ohio State, #4 Alabama
Week 2: #1 Clemson, #2 Alabama, #3 Ohio State, #4 Notre Dame
Week 3: #1 Clemson, #2 Alabama, #3 Ohio State, #4 Notre Dame
Week 4: #1 Clemson, #2 Alabama, #3 Oklahoma, #4 Iowa
Week 5: #1 Clemson, #2 Alabama, #3 Oklahoma, #4 Iowa
Selection Day: #1 Clemson, #2 Alabama, #3 Michigan State, #4 Oklahoma
2014
Week 1: #1 Mississippi State, #2 Florida State, #3 Auburn, #4 Ole Miss
Week 2: #1 Mississippi State, #2 Florida State, #3 Auburn, #4 Oregon
Week 3: #1 Mississippi State, #2 Oregon, #3 Florida State, #4 TCU
Week 4: #1 Alabama, #2 Oregon, #3 Florida State, #4 Mississippi State
Week 5: #1 Alabama, #2 Oregon, #3 Florida State, #4 Mississippi State
Week 6: #1 Alabama, #2 Oregon, #3 TCU, #4 Florida State
Selection Day: #1 Alabama, #2 Oregon, #3 Florida State, #4 Ohio State
College Football Playoff Rankings
#1 Alabama (13-0) vs #4 Oklahoma (12-1)
#2 Clemson (13-0) vs #3 Notre Dame (12-0)
Outside looking in:
5. Georgia (11-2)
6. Ohio State (12-1)
**Thanks to IrishSportsDaily.com for the Cotton Bowl graphic.