Let's hope Cincinnati and UGA follow Michigan’s and Alabama's lead so we can have a College Football Playoff

Since the decimation of the BCS – which worked – the College Football Playoff has turned bowl season into a snooze fest besides a few scattered matchups outside of the three games that will determine a national champion. And in a year in which half the field is making their debut in the Final 4 in the middle of a pandemic that the omicron variant has hijacked, it looks like we may be praying for a miracle from two of the unlikeliest of places – Georgia and Ohio – to make sure these games happen.

Michigan is doing all it can to make it to New Year’s Eve for their CFP matchup in Miami against UGA, as the school has announced that the team will be getting booster shots ahead of the game.

“The booster’s out there now, we have a full team booster shot tomorrow (Wednesday), so that’ll be good,” said Michigan offensive lineman Andrew Stueber on Tuesday. “I think everyone understands the gravity of the situation, to have an outbreak now would be devastating to a lot of people. Understanding the concern there is a big thing, so we’ve taken the proper precautions there.”

The school had already announced that stricter vaccine requirements and testing expectations for all students were coming. “We will require booster shots for all Ann Arbor faculty, staff and students and Michigan Medicine under the U-M vaccination policy by Feb. 4 or as soon as you’re eligible thereafter,” President Mark Schlissel wrote in an email to the university.

Earlier this week, Alabama announced that it was returning to its safety protocols from a year ago as they prepare for the CFP.

“Am I concerned?” Saban said, as the campus is back to wearing masks and social distancing during meetings. “I’m always concerned when there’s an issue out there, and we want to do the best we can to help our players be concerned about the issue, and respect it so they have the best opportunity to stay safe.” Alabama’s decision comes at the perfect time as Texas A&M is dealing with an outbreak before they get ready to play in the Gator Bowl.

This is the part where everyone in the room looks at Cincinnati and UGA and waits for them to make similar public announcements: cross your fingers and pray – really hard.

Ohio is Ohio, which means you should never expect any good from that place. And UGA started this season by announcing that they wouldn’t have a single COVID-19 mandate for home games.

If we wind up getting a Michigan-Alabama national championship game by default because Cincinnati and UGA aren’t healthy enough to play, they won’t have anyone to blame but themselves.