With the new CFP (College Football Playoffs) bracket and 12-team format, how will it impact the outcome of the games on Saturday and Sunday?
Four of the nine conference championship games will impact the bracket and outcome of the CFP. The Big 10, Big 12, ACC, and SEC conference championship games are the five games.
Big 10 Championship: Penn State vs Oregon
The 1 seed versus the 4 seed is the game for the B10 this weekend. The game, just like every year, will be held in Indianapolis.
For Oregon, it is their first year in the conference after they departed from the PAC-12. In previous years, they have been contenders for the playoffs but have never had the one piece in the puzzle to get their bid. This year is different as they have 2 stud wide receivers and an incredible quarterback in Dillon Gabriel. Although they are the only undefeated team, they had some struggles in their wins earlier in the season, but as things progressed, they have more conditions and are talented. A big win of theirs this season was their nail-biter vs Ohio State.
The Nittany Lions have had a whirlwind of a season but still found themselves in the B10 championship with the help of Ohio State losing in “The Game” and their win vs Maryland, they will be heading to Indianapolis. Penn State finished their regular season schedule with an 11-1 record, their only loss being Ohio State. Despite win or lose, the Lions are still a playoff lock.
Ohio State and Indiana were some other teams that had a serious shot at being in the championship game. Indiana was by far the most impressive team in college football this year with their new coach Kurk Cignetti. The Hoosiers finished with an unexpected 11-1 record with their biggest win being Michigan. The Buckeyes find their selves in a sticky situation as they lost to Michigan for the fourth straight year despite being highly favored but are still a lock for the Playoffs.
Big 12 Championship: Iowa State vs Arizona State
The tightest-seeded matchup, number 16 Iowa State vs number 15 Arizona State, looks to be extremely competitive and full of surprises just like every B12 team’s season.
Iowa State’s season has not been anything short of confusing and full of surprises. Their only two losses came consecutively against Kansas and Texas Tech. Other than those two losses, they have had somewhat of a boring season as they won out all the other games.
Like Oregon, Arizona State just came from the PAC-12 and in just their first season has already advanced to their conference championship game. Arizona State shares a common loss with Iowa State as they lost to Texas Tech by eight points. Two players that have carried them to the position they are in now are their standout running back Cam Skattebo and quarterback Sam Leavitt.
Colorado and BYU were the other two teams who had a scenario where they could have punched a ticket to the conference championship. Because Colorado and BYU did not make the conference championship, they no longer have a shot to get into the playoffs. Angry Colorado fan and Hingham sophomore, Luke Hamilton expressed his opinion on the game by saying, “I think Arizona State will destroy Iowa State.”
ACC Championship: Clemson vs SMU
The ACC championship is a matchup this conference has never seen. Because of conference realignment, SMU has a chance to win consecutive conference championships in two different conferences.
Clemson and Dabo Sweeny return to a familiar place as Dabo’s run at Clemson has been one for the books. Despite not having the level of greatness as other years, they still find themselves in Charlotte. Going into this weekend, they are going into a loss vs an incredibly good South Carolina team who should be in the playoffs but sadly are not. Clemson should be thankful to Kyle McCord’s Syracuse team for beating UMiami, which got them into the conference championship game. If Miami won, then Clemson might not have even been in the playoffs.
Ever since NIL became a thing, SMU’s team has been on an uprise. They even switched from the AAC to the ACC. Their first year in the conference has been incredible as they are undefeated in conference play in their inaugural year.
SEC Championship: Texas vs Georgia
The biggest game this Saturday will be the SEC championship in Atlanta. Georgia and Texas faced each other earlier in the year and Georgia showed out and picked up a win vs the Longhorns.
Texas’s first season in the SEC met and exceeded expectations so far. Their star-studded lineup of Alabama transfer Isiah Bond, Quinn Ewers, and Matthew Golden has them wins against particularly good teams like Texas A&M, Michigan, and Oklahoma.
The Bulldogs and Kirby Smart are back in the SEC championship game and look better than ever. As mentioned, they have already beaten this Texas team by two possessions this season and look to do the same again. Their only downside is that their quarterback, Carson Beck, has been a little shaky recently. Going into Saturday night, they scraped by a decent Georgia Tech team in an astonishing eight overtimes.
The Playoff Predictions
These matchups will be a make-or-break game for some teams. For example, whoever wins the B12 championship game will go to the playoffs, while the losing team will have a regular bowl game. But some teams will be in the playoffs win or lose, Like Oregon is already a lock for the playoffs because of their undefeated schedule. If they lose to Penn State, then they will not have the bye week in the playoffs but will still be a good seed and have a home game in the post-season.
A team that is also a lock despite not being in a conference is Notre Dame. Even though they had a bad loss early in the season, they have bounced back in a strong way as that loss was their only loss this season. People are even predicting that they can win the National Championship. Notre Dame fan, Chase Ross is optimistic for this team in the upcoming weeks as he predicted, “Notre Dame is winning it all.”
