Oregon crushes the CFP?Gaelen Morse / Getty Images
David Kenyon (Original choice: champion of Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma)
Clemson’s easy replacement is Georgia, and we’re also trading Oregon for Oklahoma. I’m sticking with Ohio State, though, as the schedule, in theory, gives the Buckeyes some time to improve before a late October clash with Penn State and a rough November.
Adam Kramer (Original Pick: Georgia Champion, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Clemson)
First of all, let me say this season is very strange, and I love it. It also makes this exercise extremely difficult to do. But here is my top four, for which I don’t feel good.
I stay with Georgia as the champion, but I change everything else. Give me Alabama seed # 2, Oregon seed # 3, and Penn State seed # 4 to complete it.
Kerry Miller (Original Pick: Alabama, Oklahoma, Georgia, Wisconsin Champion)
The only reason I went with Wisconsin instead of Iowa as my No.4 seed was that the Hawkeyes will be the road team when they face the Badgers on October 30. If I had just ignored this minor detail and picked Iowa, I would be looking so much smarter right now.
So let’s fix this mistake, swap Iowa for Wisconsin and I’m good to go. I would love to see Cincinnati come in, but I doubt that will happen. And Oregon will suffer a heavy loss in the Pac-12.
If I had to change anything other than updating the projected Big Ten West champion, I would consider swapping Georgia and Alabama in the No. 1 and No. 3 seed positions. because Georgia looked like the most complete team in the country. But I’m going to stay with Alabama as the No.1 seed and projected national champion.
Morgan Moriarty (original picks: champion from Clemson, Alabama, Oklahoma, Ohio State)
Ole Miss can beat Alabama this Saturday. If it was a home game for the Rebels, I would definitely choose them. But this one being in Tuscaloosa makes me hesitate. Elsewhere in the SEC, I have no idea what to do with Florida-Georgia this year, so I don’t trust who’s coming from the East.
It’s a long way to say that I’m going to stay with Bama for now.
So let’s go: No.1 Alabama vs. No.4 Oklahoma and No.2 Oregon vs. No.3 Iowa for the semifinals, with ‘Bama who has won everything. Saturday will tell us a lot about how strong Alabama and Georgia are.
Brad Shepard (Original Pick: Oklahoma, Georgia, Ohio State, North Carolina Champion)
As much as I tried to avoid another boring Alabama-Clemson preseason screening, I was half right. The Tides are still the nation’s first team, but the Tigers… not so much.
Through their field resumes, a one-losing Georgia or Alabama would come in, so I’ll go with ‘Bama, UGA, Oregon and Notre Dame as my new four.
The Fighting Irish may be the weakest link here, but I’m picking them to beat Cincinnati this week, and the rest of their schedule is going well. A loss will knock out the Bearcats, and the Big Ten could end up fighting too much against themselves. But I have a keen eye on Penn State. The Nittany Lions will belong if this defense can help them lead the table, but they have a brutal schedule left. The Ducks are the best in a better Pac-12, but still not great.
