Since the announcement of the 12-team College Football Playoff, there have been plenty of questions and hype. Finally, it’s here. College football will showcase some of its best stadiums and biggest brands in the first round of the expanded playoff.
Ahead of the games, here are keys to each matchup and predictions.
No. 10 Indiana (11-1) at No. 7 Notre Dame (11-1) | Friday | 8 p.m. ET | ABC
There’s plenty of intrigue in this one as in-state rivals clash for the first time since 1991. Snow is expected and temperatures will be well below freezing.
Indiana has much to prove. The Hoosiers dominated nearly everyone they played, but lost 38-15 to then-No. 2 Ohio State on Nov. 23. Is IU really one of the upper-tier teams? We’ll find out.
Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard is the player to watch. The dual-threat QB will keep a tough Hoosiers defense on its toes in the elements.
“We’ll be better in a hostile environment than we were that particular day [against Ohio State],” Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti said in a Monday news conference. “At the end of the day, it’s just football. The game is going to be won or lost between the white lines. I want them to go out there, fly around, have a little swag, and play the way we can play.”
Prediction: Notre Dame, 31-17.
No. 11 SMU (11-2) at No. 6 Penn State (11-2) | Saturday | noon ET | TNT
SMU narrowly made it into the field. How will the Mustangs perform in Happy Valley? Penn State’s defense should be the difference-maker.
The Nittany Lions rank sixth in the country at just 282.1 yards allowed per game. The unit struggled to keep No. 1 Oregon in check during the Big Ten Championship, but hadn’t allowed more than 300 yards of offense in three of its last four regular season games. SMU has only had two games all season under 400 yards offensively.
However, the best defense SMU faced all season was BYU (20th in the nation) and the Mustangs lost, 18-15. After that? Cal’s 41st ranked defense was the next best. Penn State will present problems SMU hasn’t seen this season.
Prediction: Penn State, 31-21.
No. 12 Clemson (10-3) at No. 5 Texas (11-2) | Saturday | 4 p.m. ET | TNT
Is an upset brewing in Austin? Clemson fought to get into the playoff and has one of only two coaches in the 12-team field with a national title to his name (Dabo Swinney, Georgia’s Kirby Smart). Don’t bet on it though.
Texas has experienced some lulls on offense, such as 31 yards rushing on 28 carries in the SEC Championship game loss to No. 2 Georgia. However, the Longhorns are too good defensively for it to matter against Clemson. Texas has only allowed 300 yards of offense once this season. That’s a recipe for moving on.
Prediction: Texas, 28-14.
No. 9 Tennessee (10-2) at No. 8 Ohio State (10-2) | Saturday | 8 p.m. ET | ABC
Tennessee quietly moved through its season, flying under the radar en route to the playoff. Ohio State on the other hand, enters Saturday’s matchup still licking its wounds from a difficult loss to rival Michigan Nov. 30.
“For three or four days you sit on it, you stew on it, you try to figure out what went wrong and then you move forward,” OSU head coach Ryan Day said on the CFP Selection Show.
The matchup to watch is Tennessee’s defensive line versus Ohio State’s offensive line. The Buckeyes have dealt with injuries to their o-line, causing the unit to try different combinations. The Vols were in the top half of the SEC with 29 sacks and rank eighth nationally allowing just 99.6 rushing yards per game. That could be problematic for a banged-up Ohio State squad.
Prediction: Ohio State, 27-24.