Nick Saban’s final coaches poll rankings revealed

Nick Saban has made it clear for weeks that he believed Alabama deserved to be part of the College Football Playoff, and the way the season ended seems to have reaffirmed his opinion.

Saban had Alabama at No. 2 in his final USA Today coaches poll of the season. The final poll is the only one in which USA Today reveals how each coach voted in his ballot.

Here is how Saban ranked his top six:

1. Georgia
2. Alabama
   
3. TCU
   
4. Michigan
   
5. Ohio State
   
6. Tennessee

Saban said on national television before the College Football Playoff field was set that he believed the Crimson Tide were better than Ohio State and TCU. He likely felt justified after Georgia throttled TCU 65-7 in the CFP National Championship Game. Alabama almost certainly would have put up a better fight, though you can make the case that just about any top-10 team would have.

No two-loss team has ever made the College Football Playoff, so Alabama never stood much of a chance. The Tide blew fourth-quarter leads to both LSU and Tennessee, which is the reason they were left out. They simply did not do what they needed to do.

Saban was criticized for trying to talk Alabama’s way into the playoffs, and his final coaches poll will almost certainly draw the ire of some rivals as well.