Although the expansion of the College Football Playoffs has been a long time in the making, there were still doubts about how it would impact the competitiveness of the bracket. After the first round, where all teams seeded higher were victorious (and by a large margin in all four games), some wondered if the expanded twelve-team format was the best way to improve the highly selective College Football Playoffs.
All four teams to advance to the semifinals were underdogs based on seeding. Three of the other four teams, who had been given a bye in the previous round, lost by a considerable margin.
Number one seed Oregon, who were favored to win the tournament, fell behind 34-0 to Ohio State in the first half and went on to lose 41-21. Three seed Boise State, whose regular season success came from star running back Ashton Jeanty, were unable to make any real progress against Penn State’s defensive line, losing 31-14. Notre Dame’s 23-10 victory against two seed Georgia was predictably low scoring, but the Fighting Irish dictated the game with an unprecedented ease.
The one close quarterfinal game was a double overtime thriller where five seed Texas triumphed 39-31 over four seed Arizona State. Texas had a 24-8 lead in the fourth quarter, but Cam Skattebo, who threw and ran for a touchdown, mounted an impressive ASU comeback to tie the game. Sadly, Arizona State’s season came to an end when Sam Leavitt threw an interception following a Texas touchdown and two-point conversion.
Neither Penn State nor Notre Dame came running out of the gate in the Orange Bowl. Penn State finally put points on the board in the second quarter and had a 10-3 at halftime; Notre Dame equalized with a touchdown in the third. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the game transformed. The teams traded touchdowns twice to make it a 24-24 nailbiter. Penn State received the ball on their own 15-yard line with forty-seven seconds left. Given the unpredictable nature of the game, the Nittany Lions decided to play aggressively instead of letting the clock run out for overtime. On the second play of the drive, quarterback Drew Allar was under pressure, and instead of throwing the ball away or taking a sack, he threw the ball late over the middle of the field. Notre Dame’s Christian Gray intercepted the ball just inside field goal range. The Fighting Irish ran down the clock, and Mitch Jeter nailed the field goal to win the game 27-24 for Notre Dame.
Ohio State were favorites against Texas in the Cotton Bowl, and the Buckeyes made good on their odds to win 28-14. Texas didn’t lead once. The game was tied 14-14 in the fourth quarter, but the Longhorns were forced to make something happen after an OSU touchdown. Instead, on 4th & goal, quarterback Quinn Ewers was sacked by former Texas player Jack Sawyer Sawyer forced a fumble, recovered the ball, and ran it back for an 83-yard touchdown. Shortly after, Ewers threw an interception to seal the game.
The highly anticipated title fight between Ohio State and Notre Dame took place on Monday the 20th. The Irish started with the football, marching down field on a mammoth drive to score the first touchdown of the game. Notre Dame’s defense, though, proved no match for the fire power of Ohio State’s offense, and the Buckeyes led 31-7 in the 3rd quarter. Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard tried to claw his team back into the game, throwing for two touchdowns and successfully converting two-point conversions both times, but the Buckeyes’ lead proved to be insurmountable. After 60 minutes of football, the final score was 34-23, and the Ohio State Buckeyes were national champions for the first time in ten years.
The month-long, 12-team format proved to be a success. Although the early rounds were uncompetitive because of the bye-weeks, there was no shortage of upsets throughout the tournament. Subsequently, the expanded selection of teams created a more unpredictable playoff atmosphere. Plus, can more football ever be a bad thing?
