Wild Ending Enables To Alabama Continue Path To The College Football Playoff
The SEC has pretty much what it wanted – a National Championship contender playing a 10-win team – in its league championship game.
And had Florida beaten Florida State it might even be a play-in game for the College Football Playoff. Still, with the college football world watching, Alabama will be looking to lock down its first or second seeding for the playoff.
But the league was dangerously close to having its game be not just a repeat of an earlier matchup but entirely meaningless. Then game “the play that saved the SEC Championship,” one crazy play, followed by another nearly improbable one, saved the day for the conference.
(Still it must be noted Alabama would likely still have advanced to the playoff.)
Fourth-and-25
It was that fourth-and-25, behind-the-head fling lateral that enabled Arkansas to stay alive against Mississippi. Then, when it appeared the Rebels had overcome that wild play to win, a facemask penalty gave Arkansas another shot at a top-point conversion.
It converted and won 53.52. which was the third loss for Ole Miss and second in the SEC. It’s win over Alabama earlier in the season was all but forgotten.
Still, had that wild finish not occurred, it would be the Rebels – and not the Tide – playing Florida for the league title. And it was the Gators who swamped the Rebels earlier this year 36-10, that started Ole Miss’ slide.
A rematch would mean nothing to the league and the SEC has Arkansas receiver Hunter Henry – whose backward flip of the ball somehow landed in the hands of running back Alex Collins who took off for a first down – and “divine intervention” as head Hog Brent Bielema called the play come into play.
The 2015 SEC Championship game, between Alabama and Florida, is Saturday, Dec. 5, at 4 p.m.
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