Since the final College Football Playoff rankings were unveiled on Sunday, the takes have flowed on all sides. Frankly, the discussion concerning Alabama and Ohio State and the battle for the No. 4 spot began well before the final announcement was made, but once the Crimson Tide received the final bid to the Playoff the outrage machine began to roll.
On Monday afternoon, though, ESPN Radio host Ryen Russillo had seemingly had enough and he began his program with a lengthy rant that targeted the entire college football media and, specifically, a handful of analysts by name with regard to bias in presenting arguments on all sides.
Russillo's rant was certainly amusing in nature, but it also happened to include a number of valid points. Because he has the benefit of a detachment concerning direct affiliation, there are no lines to blur and, in the case of many (including his former co-host in Danny Kanell), that simply isn't the case.
In the end, there are rational arguments for why Ohio State should have garnered the bid and Russillo smartly acknowledges that the conversation can be civil in that way. Still, his overarching point with regard to bias is very interesting, if only due to the reality that the committee actually hamstrung itself in terms of national appeal and potential ratings with the eventual choice of Alabama over Ohio State.
