Heather Dinich reveals key reasons College Football Playoff chose Alabama over FSU

Heather Dinich is trying to make sense of why Alabama jumped Florida State, and the Seminoles ended up on the outside looking in of the College Football Playoff.

During an appearance on Get Up on Tuesday morning, the ESPN analyst laid it all out, elaborating on the committee’s thought-process in putting the Crimson Tide in over the undefeated ACC champions.

“People need to know why Florida State was No. 5, period. The reason for that is because they averaged 3.4 yards per play against Louisville, and the score was tied at three in the third quarter, while Alabama was beating the committee’s No. 1 team. So the selection committee watched football games together, saw how they unfolded and then resorted to their protocol, which allowed them to look forward and ask the question, ‘Can Florida State win a national title without Jordan Travis?’ The answer in the room, after voting multiple times and agonizing over the decision, was no,” Dinich explained. “There are coaches in the room around the table who asked the question, how do we think they would fare against Washington? Against Alabama? Against Texas? Against Michigan? And they came to that decision.

“That injury. That offensive performance, on a day when it mattered the most, coupled with what Alabama did, is why they were left out of the Playoff.”

Alas, not everybody believes it was a purely football decision. Colorado head coach and Florida State legend Deion Sanders explained during an appearance on the Dan Le Batard Show that he believes it was a business decision from the committee.

“You got to understand that this is business now,” Sanders said. “You got to look at it, a lot of people don’t look at it like this is business. This is entertainment but this is business. 

“So it’s no way you’re gonna leave Coach Saban and Alabama out of a playoff. Who should be really upset, not only Florida State, but Kirby Smart. He’s been what, No. 1 for the last two years or three years and they’re out? What about them? I mean, this is unbelievable. I want those problems, yeah give me those problems.”

While Dinich understands why Sanders and others would come to that theory, she believes that’s more on the committee’s process than the result, and harkened back to the Crimson Tide missing the Playoff last season as the reason why.

“People don’t trust what they cannot see,” Dinich added. “If you and I were sitting next to each other in that selection committee meeting room as committee members, this process is so secretive that I would not even know how you voted, and vice-versa. So without the ability to be transparent, and explain thoroughly how this process works, you wind up with outrage, instead of disappointment only. You end up with fist-banging and conspiracy theories, which is what we have.

“Which is why Deion Sanders is saying things like, ‘Alabama can’t be left out of the Playoff,’ when last year Alabama was left out of the Playoff. So you have emotions and outrage.”

Alas, there’s no changing the College Football Playoff now. Florida State will have to turn their attention to their bowl game and running the table again in 2024. But it still stings a ton at the moment, no matter the explanation.