Georgia defeated Auburn 28-7 at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium before a crowd of 76,534 in the SEC Championship game yesterday (WASHINGTON POST, 12/3). Meanwhile, Clemson routed Miami 38-3 in the ACC Championship game at Bank of America Stadium in front of 74,372 fans (MIAMI HERALD, 12/3). A crowd of 65,886 fans at Lucas Oil Stadium witnessed Ohio State winning the Big Ten Championship against Wisconsin 27-21 (CLEVELAND.com, 12/3). The Big 12 Championship drew 64,104 fans for Oklahoma's 41-17 victory against TCU at AT&T Stadium (STAR-TELEGRAM.com, 12/2).
Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby "praised the return of the Big 12 title game and the big stage that it afforded the conference at AT&T Stadium." Bowlsby said, "It's the right thing for us to be on this day playing a championship game. We worked to have the national rule deregulated so we could accomplish that (with 10 teams). What we heard from the playoff people, the selection committee is that 13th data point matters. That's why we made the decision we did" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 12/3). What fans had in front of them at Bank of America Stadium last night was a "burgeoning dynasty" in Clemson. The team "feels like it has staying power." This will be Clemson’s "third straight appearance" in the College Football Playoff (WASHINGTON POST, 12/3).
