The new College Football Playoff began with four first-round games decided by a total of 77 points. It certainly wasn’t an instant classic weekend.
Notre Dame opened the 12-team format with 27-17 victory Friday night against Indiana. That was followed by two more misses on Saturday afternoon. Penn State overtook SMU 38-10 behind a dominant performance on defense. Texas held Clemson to a tie in the fourth quarter, but was in control for most of a 38-24 victory.
The nightcap seemed to go in the same direction, with Ohio State taking a 21-0 lead against Tennessee and threatening to put the game away in the second quarter. An interception in the end zone gave life to the Volunteerswhich made the score 21-10 at the break. But the Buckeyes responded with a score early in the third quarter to get back on track for an eventual 41-17 game.
The playoffs now turn to the quarterfinals, scheduled for New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Notre Dame will face Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Penn State will face Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl and Texas will meet Arizona State in the Peach Bowl. The Buckeyes will face Oregon in a highly anticipated rematch at the Rose Bowl.
After facing criticism for making SMU the last overall playoff team against three SEC contenders, the playoff selection committee will face another round of controversy following lopsided losses to the Mustangs and Hoosiers.
In that sense, the 12-team tournament has something in common with the four-team era. Blowouts were common during the national semifinals, leading to round after round debates over which teams actually deserved to make the playoffs. The only major difference is that there are still three weeks of football left before we crown the national championship.
Ohio State, Texas, SMU and committee lead first round winners and losers:
Winners
Ohio State
In terms of quality of competition and performance, no double-digit first-round win will shake things up more than the Buckeyes’ performance against Tennessee. Last seen being bullied by Michigan, Ohio State’s rebound shows why this team might be the favorite to win the national championship despite failing to even play for the Big Ten crown. Will Howard played extremely well aside from that interception in the first half, finishing with 24 completions on 29 attempts for 311 yards with two scores while focusing on receiving from Jeremiah Smith (103 yards) and Emeka Egbuka (81 yards). Defensively, OSU lost track of Nico Iamaleava at times, but benefited from Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson’s apparent hamstring injury, which limited him to just two carries. Overall, the Buckeyes outgained Tennessee by more than 200 yards.
AWAKENING: Ohio State and Ryan Day bounce back and show championship ability
CALM DOWN: Critics of College Football Playoff Routs Should Relax
Ryan Day
Day continues to prove he’s one of the best coaches in the country — as long as the Buckeyes don’t play Michigan. Freed from the stress and mental strain of this rivalry, Ohio State looked comfortable and energized by the opportunity to play at home against one of the best teams in the SEC. Although the idea that Day could have lost his job if the Buckeyes had lost was never grounded in reality, a loss on Saturday certainly would have put his job security on notice heading into next season. Now, after the way Ohio State played Tennessee, Day could take his team all the way to the national championship.
Texas
THE Longhorns were pushed back by Clemson on the game’s first drive and nearly coughed up a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter. That Cade Klubnik was able to find a rhythm and throw for 336 yards and three touchdowns was surprising, considering the Longhorns’ pass defense was easily the best in the FBS during the regular season. Otherwise, the defense managed to control the line of scrimmage, limiting the Tigers to 76 yards on 24 carries; the offense totaled 292 yards and four scores on 6.1 yards per carry.
Penn State
The 38-10 victory was over by halftime, after two defensive touchdowns helped the Nittany Lions take a 28-0 lead. The most impressive aspect of the victory was how Penn State clamped down on SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings, who was harassed into three interceptions while averaging 5.4 yards per attempt. The next challenge will be even tougher: The Nittany Lions will face Boise State running back and Heisman Trophy finalist Ashton Jeanty in the Fiesta Bowl.
Notre Dame
Notre Dame’s defense slammed the door on Indiana to earn a 27-17 victory that only seemed respectable because of the Hoosiers’ two meaningless scores in the final two minutes. Mirroring the disappearance of the offense in the Big Ten games against Michigan and the Buckeyes, Indiana managed just 278 yards on 61 plays and averaged 2.3 yards per carry. Defensively, it was Fight the Irish at their best; if this continues, Notre Dame should be considered a strong contender to beat Georgia in the Sugar Bowl and reach the playoff semifinals.
Losers
Playoff Selection Committee
The committee might have thought the hard part was over after resisting the decision to choose SMU over Alabama, Mississippi and South Carolina. But what happened in the first round is a nightmare for the committee, as the double-digit losing streak threatens to define the new format while reopening the controversial decision to pick the ACC’s second-place team rather than one of the three options. of the SEC.
Indiana and SMU
By finding itself essentially locked into the bracket before the conference championship games, Indiana had largely avoided the same controversy that had embroiled the Mustangs’ selection. The uncompetitive loss to Notre Dame fuels the debate over the lack of a fourth SEC team. Even worse for the Hoosiers, the way the Fighting Irish have dominated threatens to crush the good vibes that came from the most successful regular season in program history. If it was inevitable that the Mustangs’ performance would be compared to the perception of how an SEC team would have performed against Penn State, the vitriol aimed at SMU will be even worse. By failing to mount a real challenge against the Nittany Lions, the Mustangs are the biggest losers of the first round.
Tennessee
Tennessee stocks remain higher despite early exit from the playoffs. Looking ahead, this will be a crucial offseason for Iamaleava, who must continue to develop as a passer to bring more balance to this offense. The worst part of Saturday night was the rough start and inability to capitalize on the strong second quarter close: Ohio State bloodied the Volunteers’ noses from the start and was clearly the team more prepared to come out of the door.
This article was originally published on USA TODAY: College Football Playoff winners and losers: Ohio State and Texas thrive
