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Playoff bound: MSU ranked No. 3 to play Alabama in Cotton Bowl

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(AP) — Top-seeded Clemson will play No. 4 Oklahoma at the Orange Bowl and No. 2 Alabama gets No. 3 Michigan State at the Cotton Bowl in the New Year’s Eve semifinals of the College Football Playoff.

The selection committee revealed the pairings for second playoff Sunday, a day after the top teams eliminated any controversy about who should be in the final four.

Clemson (13-0) has been No. 1 since the committee began its rankings the first week of November. As the top seed, the Tigers get to play as close to home as possible. The Tigers and Sooners (11-1) met in Russell Athletic Bowl last season.

Alabama (12-1) began its season at AT&T Stadium in North Texas against a Big Ten (Wisconsin) and returns to face another in Michigan State (12-1).

Those games will be played on New Year’s Eve.

The national championship game is set for Monday, Jan. 11 in Glendale, Arizona.