So far this season’s College Football Playoffs have not disappointed. As of now, all Top Four seeds have been eliminated, losing out in either unsurprising or even surprising ways. With how the semifinals bracket looks, a spot in the College Football Championship is up for grabs to any team. Seeing how the bracket looks now, anyone’s predictions can either be spot on or totally off course, a good sign for many College Football fans.
5 Texas vs 8 Ohio State (Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic)
Texas Longhorns:
Coming off a Double Overtime (Double OT) win vs. 4 Arizona State, the Longhorns look to keep a strong season rolling facing off against an easily gritty Ohio State team. With quarterback doubts all season, Texas has beat all odds so far and made it to the semifinals of this season’s playoffs, winning close game after close game. With two weapons in Quinn Ewers and Archie Manning, Texas has versatility everywhere, which may prove to help them top Ohio State in this year’s Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.
Ohio State Buckeyes:
Many didn’t see Ohio State getting to this point at all. Facing off against the 1 Oregon, the Buckeyes stunned the world by beating the undefeated Ducks 41-21 in the Rose Bowl. With a talented Wide Receiver, Freshman Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State has held their own all season, crushing Tennessee in the first round and Oregon in the second, putting up more than 40 points a game. A powerful Buckeyes team looks to keep the scoring up, playing a Texas team who has become known for playing close games and coming out on top.
6 Penn State vs 7 Notre Dame (Capital One Orange Bowl)
Penn State Nittany Lions:
Dominance. Control. No lack of confidence. These describe the type of playoff run this year’s Penn State team has had, besting 11 Southern Methodist University (SMU) and 3 Boise State in back-to-back games. Though the games make Penn State look like an absolute powerhouse, one may bring their opponents to question. Playing a surprise team out of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) in SMU, and a team carried by star running back Ashton Jeanty for Boise State out of the Mountain West, Penn State has yet to play a solid playoff team. However, this doesn’t point to the fact that they don’t play good football, having solid players in running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen, Penn State has been known to produce solid running backs, and hope to highlight their abilities against a tough Notre Dame team.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish:
A team that was counted out to begin the season after a tough loss to Northern Illinois University (NIU), Notre Dame has proved to be the team people expected them to be. After that tough loss to NIU, the Fighting Irish went on an 11 game win streak, leading into the playoffs where they knocked off a Cinderella-story Indiana Hoosiers team, and beat 2 Georgia in a surprising turn of events. Notre Dame has been lead by their run-game, but has had success from their quarterback Riley Leonard. Notre Dame has proven themselves enough to walk into the playoffs and play substantial teams fair and square. The Irish look to take down a dominate Penn State team at Penn State’s Stadium (a rather tough stadium to play in as an opponent) and punch their ticket to their first Championship appearance since 2013.
