College Football Takeaways 24-25: CFP First Round Preview

Dude…

The first ever 12 team College Football Playoff is this weekend! We have come to the most exciting time of the season. With home field advantage now in play, will teams rise to the occasion? Or will they crumble in front of their home fan base? In the first round, #12 Clemson plays at #5 Texas. #9 Tennessee plays at #8 Ohio State. #11 SMU plays at #6 Penn State. Finally, #10 Indiana plays at #7 Notre Dame. The stadiums will be loud, bringing the best part of college football to the playoff. Here are my 2024-2025 first round predictions!

#12 Clemson at #5 Texas- Texas had a first round bye wrapped up as long as they got past the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship. They couldn’t handle a back up quarterback and found themselves in the opening round. To be fair, they have a home game now which is cool. If they get past Clemson, they play Arizona State, which should be an easy win for the Longhorns. Ewers and company are going to look to find their way into the semi final to likely face an undefeated Oregon team. We can’t count Dabo and the Clemson Tigers out. Claiming the last auto bid after winning the ACC Championship, Swinney an the Tigers are rolling. The Tigers were killing SMU until the very last few crucial moments. Clemson got the ball and kicked a game winning field goal. It’s a classic “David” vs Goliath matchup that should be all Longhorns. Ewers didn’t come back to lose in the first round, especially in Austin with Matthew McConnaughey on the sideline. I think it’ll be a lot closer than most experts think, as Dabo will give the Horns all they want. However, in the end, the Horns defense is too good for the lackluster Tiger attack as the Longhorns move on to face Skattebo and the Arizona State Sun Devils in the Chick Fil A Peach Bowl. 

#9 Tennessee at #8 Ohio State- This is going to be the game of the weekend. The Ohio State Buckeyes and Will Howard welcome in Nico and the Tennessee Volunteers to one of the biggest college football atmospheres in the nation. The Shoe. Ohio State was itching to get a rematch against Oregon in the Big 10 Championship, however, lost to their rival in Michigan in the last game of the season. Hopeless to gain a first round bye, Ohio State now gets Tennessee, who played extremely well in a loaded SEC. Tennessee has an incredible defense with an offense that can be highly impactful if they play well. Ohio State is built the same way. So who do you trust more? Nico Iamaleava or Will Howard. Now, I am a Will Howard hater. I thought he was bad at K-State and I think he hasn’t been incredible in an Ohio State uniform. Nico has had his own struggles, but looks like a more accurate quarterback this year. The biggest difference is The Shoe. Ohio State never loses there (unless it’s against Michigan). It’s like the Allen Fieldhouse of College Football. I think this will have a major impact on the game. I think Ohio State’s defense will get enough stops to help out Will Howard. I think Ohio State will win, but have a massive problem at QB that will be hard to overcome. Give me THE Ohio State University in an instant classic.

#11 SMU at #6 Penn State- A white out at Noon. Beers flowing at 7am in PA. What else is college football? The Penn State Nittany Lions gave Oregon all they wanted in the Big 10 Championship, but fell a little short. Now, the host a dangerous SMU team who proved to the committee they deserved to get in over the likes of Miami and Alabama. Penn State and Drew Allar are a juggernaut at home. Like the Buckeyes and the shoe, the Nittany Lions are hard to beat at home. Instead of an air raid attack, both teams will try to establish their run game. With a dynamic back field in Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton, the Lions will try to bury this extremely talented SMU defense. On the other side, SMU’s running back, Brashard Smith will try to do the same thing to the Penn State defense. Here’s the issue for SMU, the ACC isn’t as good as the Big 10. It’s just a fact. Penn State played better foes and are more battle tested. These traits and the white out at Penn State is a recipe for disaster for the Mustangs. I think Penn State easily defeats SMU and moves on to face Ashton Jeanty and the Boise State Broncos in Arizona.

#10 Indiana at #7 Notre Dame- Before I say anything, Indiana deserves to be here. Only one loss to Ohio State is worth a bid. However, go look at their schedule? Where are the tough matchups? Who did they actually beat? Sure, some 8-4 teams but never faced Penn State or Oregon. The non conference schedule was weak. Notre Dame on the other hand was battle tested throughout their season. They faced Texas A&M, Louisville, Navy and Army. All teams finished in the top 25. All wins for the Fighting Irish. If they hadn’t lost to Northern Illinois in a fluke loss, they would have a first round bye. The Irish are playing at home, against a non battle tested Hoosiers team. I think this will be the biggest blowout throughout all of the College Football Playoff as the Irish cruise on to face a tough Georgia Bulldogs team.