Paul Finebaum: 12-team Playoff proved the best team won in the end

As the dust settles on the first expanded 12-team College Football Playoff, with Ohio State the last team standing, Paul Finebaum believes the result has proven the best team was left standing at the end of it all.

While it certainly wasn’t an easy ride for the Buckeyes, Finebaum believes they were the best team overall in the nation coming into the season, and the 12-team CFP allowed them to find their footing and prove it to the world. If we still went by the four-team format, perhaps it would’ve been a different story.

“I’m ‘Paul-In’ on that, because they started the season as the best team and the most talented team,” Finebaum claimed, via SportsCenter. “They lost a little bit of focus, especially after that Michigan game. But in the Playoff, they were money. Ryan [Day] and them proved not only to be the best team, but they were able to overcome more than any other team in the country, even last night — this game should’ve been over at 31-7. People were yawning going, ‘Okay, is there anything else on TV?’ But hold on. Here comes Marcus Freeman at Notre Dame.

“In the end, they were able to close it with their talent, and they proved everything. They proved to be the best team, of course.”

It’s tough to argue with Finebaum’s sentiment. All season long, Ohio State and college football fans alike were waiting for the Buckeyes to wake up and showcase their talent. They fell to Oregon in Eugene, narrowly escaped against foes like Nebraska, and of course, they suffered a demoralizing defeat to the Wolverines during the final week of the regular season.

In the end, all that mattered was what they did in the CFP. A dismantling of Tennessee. Revenge against the aforementioned Ducks at the Rose Bowl. Holding serve and sending the SEC home by defeating Texas. And finally, their win over Notre Dame, where they did just enough to avoid a colossal collapse.

It wasn’t always written in the stars, but Ohio State got the job done, and Ryan Day deserves to be commended for not allowing a season brimming with potential to fall apart. Paul Finebaum recognizes that, and considering all the factors that made the Buckeyes a championship team this season, they’ll be contending year-in and year-out for the foreseeable future.

— On3’s Nick Kosko contributed to this article.