Paul Finebaum: You don't see Georgia threatening lawsuits over the CFP

For the first time since the College Football Playoff came to be 10 years ago, an undefeated Power Five conference champion isn’t in the four-team field. Florida State fell out of the top four when the final rankings came out last week, dropping to No. 5 despite winning the ACC Championship, and the reaction has been swift.

But there was more history made by the committee. Georgia — the No. 1 team in the penultimate rankings — fell to No. 6. That made the Bulldogs the first team to be ranked No. 1 in the penultimate rankings, but drop out of the final rankings. As Paul Finebaum noted, the fan base is handling the decision much different than Florida State’s.

“What’s so extraordinary, Georgia should’ve been No. 5 and probably should’ve been in the Playoff. But one thing you haven’t seen from the state of Georgia — you haven’t seen the governor, you haven’t seen the senators and you haven’t seen the attorney general threatening lawsuits over Georgia not getting in,” Paul Finebaum said on Wednesdays’ 2024 SEC schedule reveal show.

More on the Florida AG’s investigation into the CFP committee

Earlier this week, Florida attorney general Ashley Moody announced an investigation into the CFP committee over its decision to drop the Seminoles out of the field. Part of the inquiry is to try and obtain voting results from each committee member to figure out how the group came to its decision during what Moody called a “secretive selection process.”

“I’m also the Florida Attorney General, and I know injustice when I see it. No rational person or college football fan can look at this situation and not question the result. The NCAA, conferences, and the College Football Playoff Committee are subject to antitrust laws,” Moody said in the release. “My Office is launching an investigation to examine if the Committee was involved in any anticompetitive conduct.

“As it stands, the Committee’s decision reeks of partiality, so we are demanding answers — not only for FSU, but for all schools, teams and fans of college football. In Florida, merit matters. If it’s attention they were looking for, the Committee certainly has our attention now.” 

Although they missed out on the CFP, Florida State and Georgia are now preparing to face each other in the Orange Bowl in a New Year’s Six matchup. The Seminoles and Bulldogs haven’t played since 2003, but they’ll now get ready to square off Dec. 29 at 4 p.m. ET.

Andrew Graham contributed to this report.