In an appearance with On3Sports' Andy Staples and Ari Wasserman, ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit rejected what he interpreted as many fans' belief that he wanted Alabama in the College Football Playoff.

ESPN color analyst Kirk Herbstreit set the record straight about alleged SEC bias during his commentary while praising the four-team College Football Playoff semifinal.

Kirk Herbstreit has been making the rounds a lot lately for his takes on the College Football Playoff. All of the first-round games resulted in blowouts but he zeroed in on Indiana specifically after its 27-17 loss to Notre Dame.

The College Football Playoff semifinals begin Thursday with No. 6 seed Penn State taking on No. 7 Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. The second semifinal is Friday with No. 5 Texas battling No. 8 Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl.

Some of it may be overboard, dancing on the grave of a not-dead patient by SEC haters who finally see their chance. Some of it is a chance to vent back at the loud pro-SEC voices, at ESPN and elsewhere. And a lot of this may be premature. New arrival Texas could still bring the SEC its sixth national title in eight years.

Kirk Herbstreit has been a face of ESPN’s College GameDay for more than a quarter century, but the analyst revealed that he considered leaving the show in recent years. It all goes back to his having a very full schedule during the football season.

Kirk Herbstreit has words for people who criticize ESPN coverage of the College Football Playoff. The CFP has just four teams left.