Alabama AD to reevaluate nonconference slate after CFP picks - ESPN

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said Sunday that he would need to assess his nonconference scheduling philosophy moving forward after the Crimson Tide were the first team left out of the 12-team College Football Playoff field.

">In a post on X, Byrne said he was «disappointed» with the outcome and acknowledged the losses to .500 teams Vanderbilt and Oklahoma as «two games in particular that we did not perform as well as we should have.»

But he also added that nonconference scheduling is an area that would have to be evaluated.

«We have said that we would need to see how strength of schedule would be evaluated by the CFP,» Byrne wrote. «With this outcome, we will need to asses how many P4 nonconference games make sense in the future to put us in the best position to participate in the CFP. That is not good for college football.»

Alabama only played one Power 4 nonconference game this year — a 42-10 win at Wisconsin. But next year, the Crimson Tide have two Power 4 nonconference games — at Florida State to open the season on Aug. 30, and a return home game against Wisconsin on Sept. 13.

«Strength of schedule matters,» Byrne posted to X late Saturday night, before the CFP field was announced. «Not all schedules and conferences are created equal. Six of our eight wins are against bowl eligible teams and have come against some of the top teams in the sec, including sec champion Georgia.»

SMU (11-2) edged out 9-3 Alabama for the final at-large spot in the first 12-team playoff. Alabama is now set to play Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa, Florida, on Dec. 31.

«Brands like Alabama, brands like Clemson — the bluebloods of our sport — they've earned that right,» SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said Sunday. «But that doesn't