Three locks and a maybe

After quite the day of exciting college football action, the Final Four has been set in stone. Well, at least three of them.

As noted in my previous post a mere couple hours ago, Oklahoma is a lock as Big 12 champs, finishing up on a high note by demolishing TCU.

One loss Georgia avenged that very setback to Auburn earlier by pummeling the Tigers in the SEC championship game. Count the Dawgs in.

Already #1, Clemson absolutely pounded Miami for the ACC crown. That means U, U, yes U, can slink back to South Beach, South Park, Little Havana, or whatever it is you call home with your heads hung in shame. U just got punked. So yes, Clemson has most definitely punched their ticket.

Three in and one to yet be decided. And that's where things get interesting.

Ohio State barely -- BARELY -- hung on to down previously undefeated Wisconsin in the Big 10 -- actually 14, go figure -- conference championship game. That means the Badgers are out. Many have been looking for a reason to deny them a shot all year and now they have one.

So who will be the fourth and final team invited to the big dance?

Remember, Alabama was sitting at #5 going into today's action, and they were idle.

Auburn, which handily defeated the Tide just a week ago, went down in flames to Georgia, as mentioned above.

The "committee" is faced with the tough call of deciding whether to put two SEC teams into the Final Four (Bama and Georgia), which would mean the Big 10 gets shut out entirely, or elevating Ohio State back into the picture.

Let's not forget that OSU was thoroughly beaten in their own house early in the season by the very same Oklahoma. No shame there. But later getting woodshedded by an unranked Iowa team to the tune of over four touchdowns worth is a glaring flaw on their record.

So, therefore, ergo, and thus, yours truly suspects it will boil down to what I've predicted all along.

Yep, that pesky Nick Saban and his Tide are going to get another shot. Even though they couldn't even qualify for their own conference championship game, and sat back twiddling their thumbs while the other big boys were killing each other on Saturday.

Maybe they deserve it. Maybe not. And the Big Ten folks and fans will scream "NO FAIR" at being left out.

But somehow it just doesn't feel or smell right.

That's not even to mention Central Florida, which went undefeated all year, but was never even in the conversation for a title shot. A lesser conference, you say? Maybe so, but how do we know the Knights couldn't compete, and possibly defeat some of those same Final Four "big boys" on the national stage if they're denied the chance to do so?

That doesn't feel right either.

Want a reason to expand the national playoff to at least eight teams?

I give you Central Florida as Exhibit A.