When Clemson went down at the hands of Syracuse on Friday evening, the path was paved for Alabama to claim each and every first-place vote in both major polls. On cue, the Crimson Tide did just that and, frankly, it is very difficult to argue against what Nick Saban and company have done to this point. After all, Alabama is rolling past presumably solid opponents on a weekly basis and the Tide remain the gold standard by which programs are judged.
Not everyone, though, is hopping aboard the Alabama bandwagon when it comes to winning the ultimate prize at the end of the 2017 season and Colin Cowherd of FOX Sports is picking another program entirely.
It isn't that crazy to pick Ohio State, especially when listening to his basis and realizing he also picks Alabama and Clemson to reach the CFP this season. The Buckeyes are ranked No. 1 in the highly respected S&P+ analytics system and, aside from the hiccup against Oklahoma, Urban Meyer's team has been dominant.
Still, picking against Alabama opens up any analyst to scorn in the event that the consensus No. 1 team runs the table on the way to the title. There is a lot of football left, but the Crimson Tide are pretty imposing and it's a risk, to be sure, to go another way.
