The College Football Playoff is finally here, and it will once again exclude the Pac-12.

With USC’s 47-24 loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game on Friday night, the door was opened for 11-1 Ohio State to sneak in and grab the fourth and final spot in the playoff field. Georgia and Michigan both won their respective conference championship games to solidify the top two in the ranking, and TCU remained at No. 3 despite losing the Big 12 Championship Game to Kansas State in overtime.

USC dropped out of the top six. The final CFP Top 25 will be revealed later on Sunday.

Here’s what the 2022 CFP will look like:

Peach Bowl — Dec. 31, 5 p.m. PT on ESPN

  • No. 1 Georgia (13-0) vs. No. 4 Ohio State (11-1)

Fiesta Bowl — Dec. 31, 1 p.m. PT on ESPN

  • No. 2 Michigan (13-0) vs. No. 3 TCU (12-1)

The Pac-12 was seeking its first Playoff appearance since Washington was selected to go during the 2016 season. Utah entered the year as the league’s favorite to make a run at the field, but three in-season losses all but eliminated the Utes from the CFP field regardless of what happened Friday night.

Midway through the year, Oregon looked like it could make a charge. Losses to Washington and Oregon State in two of the Ducks’ last three regular-season games knocked them out of contention as well.

USC moved up to No. 4 in the CFP rankings ahead of Championship Week. The Trojans were one victory away from the CFP in coach Lincoln Riley’s first season. They struggled mightily on the defensive side of the ball in the Pac-12 title game, leading many in Oregon and Washington’s fanbase to lament what might have been had things gone differently in losses and they had been in Utah’s spot.

The same kind of “what if?” game is likely happening in the league office. This has been a theme in the Pac-12 for years — the league cannibalizes itself. Both of USC’s two losses were to Utah. And Utah did the same sort of thing to Oregon last year.

Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said earlier in the season and then throughout the year that he felt no one would emerge from the league schedule unbeaten in conference play.

He was correct, and it cost the Pac-12.