NCAA Division One football playoffs

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College football’s first round is complete: 12 down to eight. With the four higher-seeded teams receiving byes, the script played out pretty much to form in the first round of the NCAA Division One football playoff scenario.

Notre Dame, Texas, Penn State, and Ohio State recorded lopsided home field victories to advance to the quarterfinal round of competition in the first year of the newly formed 12-team postseason format to decide a national champion. 

The seventh-seeded Notre Dame Fighting Irish are 11-time national champions but have no championships since 1988. They turned back their cross-state rival, the 10th-seeded Indiana Hoosiers, by the final score of 27-17 before a sellout crowd in South Bend, Indiana.  The Fighting Irish used a strong running attack, featured by Jeremiyah Love’s 98-yard touchdown run — the longest in NCAA postseason history — and a solid defensive effort in their win. Notre Dame, 12-1, advances to play the second seeded Georgia Bulldogs, 11-2, on Jan.1.

Penn State‘s Coziah Izzard and Dani Dennis-Sutton wrap up an SMU player in their 38-10 victory. PHOTO: JOE HERMITT/PENNLIVE

In the quarterfinal round at the Allstate Sugar Bowl, Georgia will be without their number one quarterback, Carson Beck, who is out with an injury to his right throwing elbow.  Sophomore Gunnar Stockton will replace him. 

Many people feel that Georgia is still too strong for Notre Dame, having played a more demanding regular season schedule and because the Fighting Irish’s single regular season loss was an embarrassing 16-14 setback to Northern Illinois on their home field.

There were reports that Irish fans were so upset that head coach Marcus Freeman had to receive a police escort to his home following the contest. And even though the team has won 10 straight games, diehard Notre Dame fans still doubt the team’s chances to advance past a battle-tested Georgia Bulldog team, winner of back-to-back NCAA Division One national championships. Their chance for a history-making three-peat died last season following a 27-24 loss to Alabama in Tuscaloosa that snapped their 42-game win streak. This loss knocked them out of the old eight-game playoff scenario by the College Football Playoff selection committee. 

Georgia coach Kirby Smart and a large segment of college football fans felt that his Bulldogs team got jobbed by the selection committee. 

“It was a sad thing that the seniors on that team did not get a chance to win a third straight National Championship and a special place in college football history,” said Smart.

A different scenario surrounds the eighth-seeded Ohio State Buckeyes following their 42-17 first-round thrashing of ninth-seeded Tennessee. Shock waves of frustration and anger are still fresh in the minds of Ohio State fans following their team’s staggering upset loss to archrival Michigan on their home field.

Buckeye fans won’t consider anything less than a national title to take the heat off head coach Ryan Daly, who is fighting to keep his job despite having a stellar 56-8 winning record. The four straight losses to Michigan, particularly this last one, have many questioning his championship mettle.   

Buckeye quarterback Will Howard, who threw 24 for 29 for 311 yards and two touchdowns, rallied from his woeful performance in the Wolverines’ game to lead his team to touchdowns on their first three offensive possessions. Tennessee got as close as 21-10 at halftime before Ohio State blew open the contest in the second half.  Howard and sensational freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who had six catches for 103 yards and two touchdowns, quieted the disgruntled Buckeye fans for the moment. 

Georgia Sophomore QB Gunner Stockton will start against Notre Dame. PHOTO: HYOSUB SHIN

Their next opponent will be the top-ranked and undefeated Oregon Ducks, who earned a bye in the first round. They will meet in the Cotton Bowl Classic on Jan. 1.  The Buckeyes will look to avenge their earlier season 32-31 loss to the Ducks in Oregon. According to many Ohio State faithful, even if the Buckeyes were to upset the high-powered Oregon squad, Ryan Daly would still be on the coaching hot seat.

Sixth-seeded Penn State, 12-2, embarrassed the 11th-seeded Southern Methodist University Mustangs by a score of 38-10 before a sellout crowd at Beaver Stadium.  Penn State head coach James Franklin’s team put on a dominating defensive performance with two interceptions for touchdowns against SMU to advance to a matchup with the third seeded Boise State Broncos, 12-1, in the VRBO Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31.

The Nittany Lions will face the daunting task of trying to contain Boise State All-American running back Ashton Jeanty.  The Heisman Trophy finalist is on a record-setting course with one of the finest seasons for a running back in college football history, with 2497 rushing yards.

The fifth-seeded Texas Longhorns, 12-2, punched their ticket to the quarterfinal round with their 48-24 triumph over the 12th-seeded Clemson Tigers. This was a close game for a while as Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, who threw for 336 yards and three touchdowns, and his teammates put up a tough fight. 

The Tigers got as close as a 31-24 deficit in the fourth quarter but didn’t have enough to overcome the offensive firepower of the Longhorns.  Texas running backs Jaydon Blue, who ran for 146 yards and two touchdowns, and Trey Wisner, who ran for 110 yards and a touchdown, sparked the running attack with a team total of 292 yards, running roughshod over the visitors from South Carolina.  Texas will face fourth seeded Arizona State, 11-2, who received a bye in the opening round in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl, on Jan. 1.

Homefield proved to be a significant factor in the opening round of this 12-team race for the college football national championship, as each of the victors won by double-digit margins.  But now the venue changes as the field of eight teams will compete at traditional bowl sites.

Money has been the central theme of this 12-team competition, which will expand to reach a 16-game format.  The NCAA is trying to produce a smaller version of their celebrated “March Madness” college basketball model. However, when considering the dangerous injury factor of college football, more games and more money will not outweigh the hazardous effects of the on-field product.