Paul Finebaum reveals his perfect College Football Playoff final four entering championship week

With just the conference championship games remaining, the College Football Playoff picture is getting clearer. For college football analyst Paul Finebaum, assuming there aren’t any upsets, the four finalists have already been decided.

During an appearance on Get Up, Paul Finebaum was asked if the current, presumed final four for the College Football Playoff was deserving, assuming nothing changed after the conference championship games, meaning Georgia, Michigan, TCU, and USC.

“I think so, Greeny, and we get caught up in semantics every year. Who’s the best? There’s no way to know when TCU has a different type of schedule,” Paul Finebaum said.

Paul Finebaum still has issues with TCU’s schedule, playing in a Big 12 that was full of parity and few great teams. However, he still can’t ignore an undefeated season from a Power Five school.

“But, ultimately, I think we would see Georgia, then obviously Michigan, TCU, and USC. So, you’d have a Georgia-SC game and a Michigan-TCU game in the semifinals.”

All four of these teams still have another game to play. There is an assumption that Michigan and Georgia are safe, even with a conference championship loss. However, a loss to Utah would be a second for USC. TCU, as Paul Finebaum pointed out, doesn’t have the most impressive resume if something went wrong against Kansas State. So, there is still room for chaos.

So, if there is chaos, who makes the CFP then?

Paul Finebaum on Ohio State, Alabama

If there is chaos, who the College Football Playoff committee puts in the fifth slot is incredibly important. Despite his SEC affiliations, Paul Finebaum thinks that slot should go to Ohio State and not Alabama, though.

“Both strength of schedules, clearly Alabama has a better strength of schedule, but I can’t put somebody in because they have good losses. One thing you have to remember about Alabama. Why are we even talking about them vs. Tennessee? Tennessee beat Alabama and beat LSU. Remember, Alabama lost to LSU three weeks after losing to Tennessee,” Paul Finebaum said.

“And the one thing that Alabama did not have to do that I think the committee ought to consider, they didn’t have to play Georgia — the best team in the country — and I think that would’ve been another loss. So, I would clearly go in favor of Ohio State. I don’t like it. I think they completely collapsed in the fourth quarter and it was embarrassing. But they still get the edge over Bama.”