CFP

HOUSTON —  In December 2021, Courtney Morgan finally had it all — or at least it seemed that way.He was back at Michigan as Jim Harbaugh’s director of player personnel, helping to construct the roster of the program that once built him from an inner-city Los Angeles kid into a worldly young man who was ready to conquer life after football. The Wolverines had just beaten Ohio State for the first time in a decade, and Morgan had worked to secure what would be a top-10 class for Michigan.But one night, Morgan’s phone…

For the first time in College Football Playoff history, an undefeated Power Five conference champion was denied a spot, as the selection committee chose 12-1 Alabama over 13-0 Florida State.Supporters of the Seminoles, who lost starting quarterback Jordan Travis to a season-ending injury, will ask: Why even play the games?The Crimson Tide rose from No. 8 in the rankings on the momentum of a 27-24 victory over No. 1 Georgia, the two-time defending national champions, on Saturday night in the SEC championship game.…

The last year of the four-team College Football Playoff, fittingly, will present the selection committee with its toughest decision yet — one so hard and fraught with political drama that the 13 humans probably are going to wish they were Bowl Championship Series computers for the next 24 hours.Based on the rankings entering this weekend, only two teams are clearly in the field: No. 2 Michigan, the Big Ten champion, and No. 3 Washington, the Pac-12 champion. Three Power-Five conference champions with traditionally…

It was all there for a Hollywood tale — the USC Trojans making the College Football Playoff for a chance to play for a national championship just down the road at SoFi Stadium.But it was not meant to be. The Utah Utes saw to that Friday night, and so now the four teams vying for a January trip to Los Angeles will carry no local flavor.No. 1 Georgia, the defending national champions at 13-0, will face No. 4 Ohio State in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta on New Year’s Eve. The Buckeyes, 11-1, backed into the final spot thanks to…