Boo Corrigan explains ranking Alabama over Tennessee

Much of the debate on Tuesday night outside of the top four was between Ohio State and Alabama. Whoever was placed in the No. 5 role would have the best chance of making the College Football Playoff if someone in front of them slips up in a conference championship game. The Buckeyes got the spot and will now wait and pray.

Other debates were most likely happening in Knoxville, as Tennessee came in at No. 7, one spot behind Alabama despite a head-to-head win. Both teams have the same record at the end of the regular season, finishing at 10-2.

CFP committee chair Boo Corrigan explained putting Alabama over Tennessee, saying the “whole body of work” was the ultimate decider. While head-to-head is something they look at, Corrigan and the committee did not think it was enough to place the Volunteers ahead.

“It was very much debated amongst the committee and a lot of conversation around that. The value of head-to-head is certainly one of the criteria that we look at, but we’re looking at the whole body of work. You look at the two losses by Alabama, including one on the last-second field goal to Tennessee … and as we went through that, that was part of the determination to have Alabama ahead of Tennessee.”

When asked if things could change and the two teams flip-flopped, Corrigan did not seem interested in looking ahead.

“We deal with where we are right now, and there’s a number of championship games to be played. We’ll deal with the championship games … moving forward.”

Comparing resumes of Alabama, Tennessee

When looking from a loss perspective, two really stand out when comparing the two. Tennessee actually defeated Alabama at Neyland Stadium in Oct. Even if a field goal was the decider, the Volunteers were the ones who came out on top and finally broke their streak on the Third Saturday in October.

Josh Heupel’s squad most likely got dinged for their road loss against South Carolina on Nov. 19. Sixty-three points were put past Tennessee at Williams Brice Stadium before losing by 25 points.

The other two were both on the road, with Alabama losing in overtime to LSU, while Georgia knocked off Tennessee in Athens.

While neither team seems likely to make the College Football Playoff, the rankings still do matter. Whichever non-Georgia SEC team is highest is most likely to appear in the Sugar Bowl, while the lower ranked is in line for the Orange Bowl.

In the words of Corrigan “whole body of work” will be why Alabama fans will be spending New Year’s in New Orleans.