CFP Round 2 Predictions

Dude…

We had 12 teams. We are down to 8. The first round of the College Football Playoff went the way everyone was hoping it wouldn’t go. Indiana at Notre Dame. Blowout. SMU at Penn State. Blowout. Clemson at Texas. Blowout. The one game we thought might be close. Tennessee Orange flooded The Shoe. Maybe Tennessee can keep it close against Ohio State. Nope. Blowout. Now, the matchups look better in the quarterfinals going into 2025. Here are the quarterfinal predictions from yours truly.

Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl #5 Texas vs. #4 Arizona State- This is where we decide what direction the college football playoff selection process for next year. The Texas Longhorns lost 2 games. Both to the Georgia Bulldogs. Arizona State also had 2 losses to the 8-4 Texas Red Raiders and the 5-7 Cincinnati Bearcats. One team lost to a legit National Championship contender. The other lost to a non bowl league team. You would think Texas would be ranked higher. However, Texas had to play in the first round of the playoff. Arizona State got a bye. The winner of this game will determine if we go with automatic byes for conference winners or not. If the Sun Devils want to win, they need Cam Skattebo to get going. Skattebo had 19 touchdowns and over 1,500 yards on the ground this season. He is the engine to this machine. This is going to be a difficult task for the Sun Devils offense as this Texas team is one of the best in the nation. I don’t believe the offensive line of ASU can keep up. Quinn Ewers is trying to prove he is a winner. He won’t be the QB at Texas with Arch Manning behind him, but he needs to make a big impression to make the league. Or land another starting quarterback spot at a different university. He is going to prove it against this faulty Sun Devils defense. Skabbedo shines, but the rest of the team lets him down. The Longhorns storm home to Dallas for the semifinal.

Rose Bowl #8 Ohio State vs. #1 Oregon- Can Ryan Day save the season? Hell, he might this to save his job at THE Ohio State University as they go to one of college football’s most convenient bowls in their history. The Rose Bowl hosts this rematch to see who goes on… and who goes home. THE Ohio State University got past the Tennessee Volunteers.. More like brought Belt To Ass on those boys (Pat Bev I love you this is all his, please don’t sue). Will Howard has proven me wrong all year. They lost to Michigan, which sucks but a rivalry brings the best out of everyone. The second loss came against Oregon. On a 12 man on the field penalty that saved the Oregon team. The 13-0 Oregon Ducks have it all. Dillon Gabriel has proven he is a legit quarterback and the Ducks defense has been shutting the door on all of their opponents.Can Day get his get back? My answer is no. I get it, he has proven me wrong all year, but Will Howard is not a winning quarterback. He’s not. He’s an almost get you there guy. He will not win you the big games. Dillon Gabriel is. The Ducks will find a way to win either on the back of Gabriel himself, or Will Howard will fold under the spotlight once again. Give me Oregon to go battle Texas in the Semifinal. 

VRBO Fiesta Bowl #6 Penn State vs. #3 Boise State- The argument about ASU being an automatic qualifier doesn’t apply to this game. Ashton Jeanty got snubbed. Period. Travis is a phenomenal player who deserves all the praise he is getting. I am not a Hunter Hater. I just think Jeanty did more. He carried his team to a playoff. You’re playing in a bowl. He had to be taken out of the game in the 3rd quarter because he was beating them too badly. You were good, just not the best. Jeanty would’ve won if he played anywhere in a power 5 conference. He’s going to prove that he is the best player when they play Penn State. Drew Allar is good, but I think the Broncos are underrated, unvalued, and are way better than most people think. I think Jeanty will roll behind that veteran offensive line and do enough to squeak past Penn State. The Nittany Lions will end their season, but have a lot of promise for next season. The Broncos are due or die, and they will be a handful in Florida at the Orange Bowl.

AllState Sugar Bowl #7 Notre Dame vs. #2 Georgia-  The Fighting Irish head to the Sugar Bowl to take on a back up qb and the Georgia Bulldogs. The Irish creamed the Indiana Hoosiers at home, and showed they can do it all. It does help to not be in a conference but hey, they look legit. The last time Georgia had a back up QB in the CFP, they won. The time before, same thing. Can Stockton be another home town hero to bring the National Championship to Athens? I think Notre Dame is killing it. Their offense is rolling. The defense is flying all over the field. They got Shane Gillis calling Nick Saban Alabama Jones. HOW DARE YOU! Shane, that’s an icon. Your team isn’t even man enough to join a conference so they blow out no name teams all year. Just like they did with Indiana. However, YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE THE BIG DOGS?? Stay out on the porch puppies, DAWGS BY A MILLION!