Alabama football was one of the College Football Playoff committee’s top 12 teams, coming in at No. 11 in the final rankings after the regular season and conference championship. However, the Crimson Tide missed making the CFP field, and will instead learn its bowl fate later on Sunday.

The Tide was a victim of the playoff format, which doesn’t simply pull the top 12 teams and create its bracket. Instead, the five highest-ranked conference champions are automatically in, which hurt UA.

Clemson beat SMU on a last-second field goal in the ACC championship, sealing a spot in the field. The Tigers finished at No. 16 in the rankings, but leapfrogged Alabama.

Meanwhile, Arizona State was ranked No. 12, one spot behind the Crimson Tide, but was also locked into the field due to winning the Big 12 title, even getting a first-round bye. The four highest-ranked conference champions earned the byes, as well as the automatic playoff spots.

Clemson will play a first-round game as the No. 12 seed in the field, and will travel to Texas.

With SMU also getting in following the narrow defeat, Alabama was the first team out of the field. In the end, the Crimson Tide’s losses to Vanderbilt and Oklahoma dealt its playoff hopes a critical blow.

“We looked at the number of wins Alabama had against ranked opponents,” CFP selection chair Warade Manuel said on the ESPN selection show after the field was revealed. “We looked at SMU’s schedule. They were undefeated in-conference. Their losses were to ranked teams. But we also looked at Alabama’s losses to unranked teams. It was quite a debate.”

Alabama’s bowl fate will be revealed later on Sunday.