The initial College Football Playoff rankings have drawn criticism, particularly regarding the placement of Alabama at No. 5 and Tennessee at No. 13, despite Tennessee's 16-point victory over Alabama earlier in the season. Radio host Craig Carton voiced his strong disapproval on "The Craig Carton Show," questioning the committee's logic.
"How is Alabama ranked fifth when Tennessee is ranked 13th?" Carton asked. "They played each other two weeks ago. Tennessee beat them by 16 points."
While Carton acknowledged that Tennessee may not deserve a top-five spot themselves, he argued that head-to-head results should be the primary factor when comparing teams with similar records. He suggested that other metrics like strength of schedule should only be considered after on-field outcomes.
"Isn't head-to-head, shouldn't head-to-head be the number one deciding factor when figuring out which team should be over another team?" he questioned. "Then you can, of course, get into strength of schedule, the opponents, and all the other nonsense."
Carton accused the committee of showing favoritism to Alabama, stating, "And yet, here we are, like we always are, currying favor with the Crimson Tide." He concluded that Alabama is "screwing everybody else" with their ranking and does not deserve to be considered a national title contender this year.
