Josh Pate defends Alabama's College Football Playoff resume regardless of SEC Championship result

The Alabama Crimson Tide are getting ready for a rematch with Georgia in the SEC Championship Game. There, a conference championship is on the line. However, there are also those who think that Alabama’s College Football Playoff spot is at risk with a loss, too.

Josh Pate appeared on Get Up on the Thursday before the SEC Championship. There, he defended Alabama and shared exactly why he thinks Alabama should be in the CFP regardless of whether they win or lose.

“100%,” Pate said. “You’re talking about conference championship games, like the biggest talking point when that comes out of your mouth, back to you on the street, is what do they even mean anymore? You can’t have that if you’re the Big Ten. You can’t have that if you’re the SEC. So, to maintain and solidify the value of those games, there’s got to be maximum reward, not just for winning the game but for playing in the game. If we even broach the conversation of, if you lose this weekend, you may be on the way out, it cuts the knees out from under the value of the game. There’s no way they’re dropping down.”

Despite that, the idea can’t be discredited completely. ESPN’s CFP insider, Heather Dinich, recently suggested that if Alabama were blown out or embarrassed, that result could change how it is viewed by the selection committee. Of course, that isn’t a notion that Pate agrees with.

“I would look, and I would say, ‘This is football. We score in threes and sevens firstly.’ So, that can happen really quick,” Pate said. “Secondly, Ole Miss sat at home. Oklahoma sat at home. [Texas] A&M sat at home. I went and played because I earned a reward. You don’t get punished during a reward. That’s what I would say back.”

Alabama already beat Georgia in Athens. So, while a second win is never easy, a blowout at a neutral site seems unlikely. Of course, Alabama can avoid that discussion entirely by simply winning the game and knocking off Georgia. That’s what defensive lineman Tim Keenan recently suggested the Crimson Tide actually wanted to do.

“We’re a 10-2 team in the SEC,” Keenan said. “We go out and play hard. Of course, it’s the SEC Championship. It’s a big deal. We’ve already beaten this team before. We’re going to go out there and make sure we do the same thing, but we’re going to make sure we handle business on our own end and not leave it up to the committee to make decisions for us.”

The SEC Championship Game is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. EST on Saturday, December 6th. The game will be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.