Conference championships matter. Head-to-head matters. Strength of schedule matters. Every game counts, though some seem to count more than others and good luck figuring out which ones count most.This and more is what the College Football Playoff selection committee sorts through to pick the four best teams in the country.If consistency, certainty and clear-cut criteria are what you crave, this may not be the sport for you. Yes, the goal posts move from season to season. That may be the way it is for awhile -- at least until the playoff grows up.Every year is going to be different, CFP executive director Bill Hancock said. Football seasons are like snowflakes, theyre all different. Next year well be standing here talking about some other way it fell out. And thats great.It worked out great Sunday for Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Washington. Not so great if you root for Penn State.No. 1 Alabama (13-0) will face No. 4 Washington (12-1) in one semifinal and second-seeded Clemson (12-1) meets third-seeded Ohio State (11-1) in the other on Dec. 31.The committee stayed with the same top four it picked going into championship weekend, leaving out No. 5 Penn State (11-2) even though the Nittany Lions won the Big Ten title game and beat Ohio State earlier in the season.The Buckeyes are the first team to reach the playoff in its three-year history without winning their conference.Many questioned why Ohio State deserved a spot, especially over Penn State. Selection committee chairman Kirby Hocutt made it clear that the 12-person committee did not.Ohio States three victories against top-10 teams (No. 7 Oklahoma, No. 8 Wisconsin and No. 6 Michigan) and only one loss, by three at Penn State, won the day over the Nittany Lions. Penn State lost to Pitt and Michigan (by 39) before closing the season with nine straight victories.Several times, Hocutt cited Penn States noncompetitive loss and Ohio States strong nonconference victory at Oklahoma.So the key is to play a difficult nonconference schedule?Well, maybe not.The final spot came down to Penn State (11-2) and Pac-12 champion Washington.The Huskies only loss was to 10th-ranked Southern California and its nonconference schedule featured FCS Portland State, Rutgers and Idaho. Penn State played Pitt, Temple and Kent State out of conference.I think because of Washingtons strength of schedule, their margin for error was very slim, Hocutt said. I think our discussions and our decision would have been much easier if Washington would have had a stronger strength of schedule this college football season.You could say Washington benefited because it did not play a difficult nonconference opponent. But you can also say that if Penn State beat Pitt it would have benefited from playing a difficult nonconference schedule.Hocutt said the committee dug deep into the Huskies and Nittany Lions.As we looked at those key statistics from an offensive standpoint, from a defensive standpoint, from starting field position differential, the edge was to Washington, Hocutt said. You look at turnover margin, Washington ranks first in the country in turnover margin compared to Penn State, ranking 50.If there is a pattern to be found in the committees work over three years it may be this simple: For the most part, the teams are ranked by the number in the loss column.No two-loss team has made the playoff. Even a close head-to-head win over Ohio State and a conference title was not enough for Penn State to overcome two losses.Maybe next season will be different.In many ways the College Football Playoff is no different than the Bowl Championship Series, a highly subjective system that relied on poll voters to pick the top two teams. The one crucial difference, though, is enormous. Four instead of two makes the CFP better than the BCS.What could provide more consistency, more objectivity while removing much of the subjectivity, is bigger playoff. Eight teams, with five automatic qualifying Power Five conference champions, the best team from the Group of Five and two wild cards. Fewer debates, plus it could put some juice back into championship weekend, which has become a little anticlimactic.It would also bring Cinderella into college footballs postseason, providing an opportunity for a non-Power Five team to win a meaningful postseason game and an underdog conference championship game winner to move on and play for the national title.Sounds interesting, but it is not happening anytime soon.Hancock said expansion of the playoff is not up for consideration by the conference commissioners. The CFP is in year three of a 12-year television deal with ESPN.Clemson coach Dabo Swinney cautioned that more postseason would lessen the value of the regular season and that adding another round would require eliminating other games.I dont think you can go past 15 games in college football, said Swinney, whose did just that last season and lost to Alabama in the national championship game. Something would have to give.Ohio States Urban Meyer said he empathizes with Penn State and would not mind seeing a system that rewards all conference champions.Im not sure theres an easy answer, said Meyer, who has won two BCS championships and the first College Football Playoff. I think were heading in the right direction.---Follow Ralph D. Russo at www.Twittre.com/ralphDrussoAP---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org Cheap Air Max 2018 . The FA rejected Wilsheres appeal that the length of his punishment was "clearly excessive" and said Thursday his suspension begins with immediate effect. He will miss league matches against Chelsea on Monday and West Ham on Dec. Womens Air Max . One game after a miserable showing in Oklahoma City, Gay tied a career high with 41 points and the Sacramento Kings cruised to a 114-97 victory at the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. http://www.airmaxwholesale.com/ . Carey Price didnt, but he still came out on top against one of his rivals for the No. 1 job at the Sochi Games. The Anahim Lake, B.C., native was stellar in making 39 saves in his home province and Lars Eller got credit for a bizarre short-handed winner as the Canadiens defeated the Canucks 4-1. White Air Max Shoes . - Chris Tierney snapped a tie with a power-play goal late in the third period as the London Knights rallied from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Erie Otters 5-3 in Ontario Hockey League action on Wednesday. Air Max 90 From China . General manager Jarmo Kekalainen told Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch on Friday that he wants to see Gaboriks contributions go beyond the scoresheet before considering a long-term deal for the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent. This story is part of ESPN The Magazines Oct. 31 NBA Preview Issue. Subscribe today!Orlando MagicOverall: 65 Title track: T90 Ownership: 79 Coaching: T52 Players: 78 Fan relations: 65 Affordability: 50 Stadium experience: 26 Bang for the buck: 75 Change from last year: +5Oh, what a difference a half-decade makes. Way back in 2011, the Magic were perennial playoff-makers (six straight appearances in all, starting in the 2006-07 season), coached by Stan Van Gundy and ranked a lofty 16th overall in these very Ultimate Standings. Five years, four postseason-less campaigns and four head coaches later? Theyre mired in the muck of mediocrity, a disheartening 49 spots lower (No. 65 overall), with no top-50 rankings to their name, besides affordability and stadium experience. Where, oh where, has the magic gone?Whats goodThe still-gleaming, still-shiny-new Amway Center, now in its seventh year, remains a fan favorite in Central Florida (25th in having a great stadium, its the top-ranked NBA arena). The tallest HD scoreboard in the league? Check. More than 1,100 digital monitors? Check check. A fun zone for kids AND one for adults? (For the over-21 set, its called the One80 Grey Goose Lounge, complete with sweeping views of the city.) Check, check and ... well, you get the picture. Even if the on-court action isnt great, that scoreboard -- with its 4.4 trillion shades of color -- makes it look great.Whats badTThe Magics aforementioned playoff drought -- four years and counting -- matches its longest dry spell since the franchise entered the NBA 27 years ago.dddddddddddd Hope, in turn, has run dry. Witness: With the team tied for 90th in title track, you can color Orlando fans skeptical about their championship prospects. (The Magic share that rank with the Milwaukee Bucks, their not-so-lofty NBA colleagues who have toiled in mediocrity for the better part of two decades.) Just a wild guess? The rash of new faces -- only six players remain from last years squad -- wont do much to mend already tenuous trust in the teams future prospects.Whats newBehold, the revolving door of head coaches in central Florida: Stan Van Gundy begat Jacque Vaughn begat James Borrego begat Scott Skiles ... begat Frank Vogel. Vogel, Orlandos fifth head coach in nearly as many seasons, looks to have the locals early buy-in, at least. He comes by way of Indiana, where, in his five full seasons at the helm, he steered the Pacers to four playoff berths. (His lone miss? The 2014-15 season, with Paul George lost for most of the year.) 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