Alabama-Clemson rubber match in College Football Playoff one step closer to reality

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Would you take Alabama-Clemson III or the field in the College Football Playoff championship game on Jan. 8?

The field is at a serious disadvantage heading into October. In fact, the we're almost as confident in Alabama-Clemson III as we are in Cavs-Warriors IV in the 2017-18 NBA Finals. How would you draw any other conclusion right now?

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Alabama has outscored Vanderbilt and Ole Miss 125-3 in its first two SEC games. The Rebels were the one team that gave the Crimson Tide fits the last three seasons, and they were disposed of in 66-3 fashion on Saturday.

Jalen Hurts has settled in under new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. At SEC Media Days this summer, Nick Saban said the message to his team was, "Don't waste a failure." They are wasting everybody else in response, and it's not going to be PG-13 in October. Alabama plays Texas A&M, Arkansas and Tennessee, teams with a combined record of 8-5 and coaches who have been on the hot season all season in Kevin Sumlin, Bret Bielema and Butch Jones, respectively.

Will any of those coaches be fired on Halloween — which, we should note, is Saban's birthday? Will he be the final nail like he has been so many times before

Clemson, meanwhile, spoiled its second ESPN College GameDay party in three weeks by disposing of Virginia Tech 31-17 on Saturday. If GameDay is coming to your city, then you better make sure the Tigers aren't far behind. Clemson jumped out to a 24-3 lead by the third quarter and held on from there. Dorian O'Daniel provided the dagger with a pick-six, just like did against Louisville. 

Kelly Bryant might not be Deshaun Watson, but the new quarterback has been good enough to hand top-15 teams Auburn, Louisville and Virginia Tech their only loss. The defensive line is nasty, and Dabo Swinney keeps spilling everyone else's guts in the ACC. That's 12 straight wins in true road games, and he's counting. The Tigers march on against Wake Forest, Syracuse and Georgia Tech in October. There isn't a loss in there.

It's hard to find a loss for either team in November or December, either. Maybe Auburn or potentially Georgia in the SEC championship can get Alabama. Maybe Florida State or potentially Miami in the ACC championship could get Clemson. That feels about the same as saying maybe the Spurs can get the Warriors or the Celtics can get the Cavs before the NBA Finals.

Deep down, you know it's not going to happen. 

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If Alabama and Clemson both get back to the College Football Playoff for the third consecutive season, then they almost certainly won't be paired against each other in the first round.

You could count the serious challengers to that on one hand, without using your thumb. Penn State and Oklahoma jump out because of their offenses and the fact they have the top two players in the Heisman Trophy race in Saquon Barkley and Baker Mayfield, respectively. Michigan or Ohio State would provide a blockbuster made-for-TV matchup because of coaches Jim Harbaugh and Urban Meyer, but do they have enough on offense? Wisconsin would be the last team we'd even consider right now. 

Every other remaining unbeaten team in the rest of the Power 5 conferences is a stretch. TCU, Utah, Washington and Washington State would have to catch every break to have a chance. That's where we're at heading into October: where we finished in 2015 and 2016.

The first act was great, and the sequel was even better. It appears they want a rubber match, and they don't care if the rest of college football likes it or not.

Take Alabama-Clemson III over the field. That's the better bet right now.

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Bill Bender is a national college football writer for The Sporting News.
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