Greg Sankey invokes 'Sesame Street' in CFP argument for potential SEC champion Alabama

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey dropped some street smarts during an appearance on "College GameDay" on Saturday.

"Sesame Street," that is.

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Sankey made an appearance at the "GameDay" setup in Atlanta ahead of the SEC championship game between No. 1 Georgia (12-0, 8-0 in SEC play) and No. 8 Alabama (11-1, 8-0). While the Bulldogs are a certainty to get in with a win — and potentially a loss — the Crimson Tide has a more difficult path into the College Football Playoff.

Even if Nick Saban's Alabama team upsets top-ranked Georgia, the Crimson Tide doesn't necessarily control its destiny in the race to make the CFP, and could need losses by No. 4 Florida State and No. 7 Texas to make the playoff. Sankey, however, doesn't see it that way, saying instead a Crimson Tide win could result in two SEC teams making it in:

"That's not the real world of college football," Sankey said. "Let's go back to 'Sesame Street.' So we're really basic: One of these things is not like the other. And that's the Southeastern Conference. We have five of the top 15 (teams).

"We have five of the top 15 teams, so a third. And our teams are playing everyone in the conference. And they're all attached. They have to overcome a ton of adversity, intense environments. They're going to be close games. But the reality is there's been no one that's experienced the success in the postseason, the College Football Playoff, that we have. When you put us up actually against the teams, and not just the committee room, we stand alone."

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Concluded Sankey:

"We stand alone today, regardless of today's outcome (in the SEC championship game). I think the opportunity in front of the committe is to acknowledge that there could be, depending on the outcome, two of the best four teams in the SEC."

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While Sankey's assertion is true that the SEC has more CFP success than other conferences — twice fielding two teams in a four-team playoff — the committee might not be aligned in his thinking. It has consistently ranked Texas (11-1, 8-1 in Big 12 play) at No. 7, one spot ahead of Alabama.

Should the Longhorns win their Big 12 title game vs. No. 18 Oklahoma State (9-3, 7-2), they would have a pivotal head-to-head advantage over the Crimson Tide following their Week 2 win in Tuscaloosa.

One could argue Alabama and Texas aren't the same teams as they were in Week 2. And the Crimson Tide would have a tremendous resume-booster with a win over No. 1, two-time defending national champion Georgia. But it remains to be seen whether that would be enough to sway the committee in favor of the SEC.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Greg Sankey: Alabama should make CFP if Crimson Tide upsets Georgia