The 12-teamCollege Football Playoffhas eight teams remaining.
Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Tulane and James Madison all exited the playoff in the first round. The quarterfinal matchups on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are set. Here's a quick look at the matchups and betting lines for the next four games.
Cotton Bowl
No. 2 Ohio State (12-1) vs. No. 10 Miami (11-2)
Dec. 31 | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN | Ohio State -9.5 | Total: 42.5
The Hurricanes only needed one touchdown tobeat Texas A&M in a 10-3 win. Malachi Toney's rushing TD with 1:44 to go broke a 3-3 tie and Bryce Fitzgerald sealed the game with less than 30 seconds left when he intercepted Texas A&M QB Marcel Reed in the end zone.
Miami's win potentially saved Ohio State from a road-like atmosphere on New Year's Eve. Aggie fans would have packed AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Meanwhile, Ohio State fans are making their third trip to the Cotton Bowl in as many years.
The Hurricanes sacked A&M QB Marcel Reed seven times on Saturday. Ohio State has allowed just 11 sacks all season long. Can edge rushers Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor get consistent pressure without a blitz? Will linebacker Mohamed Toure be able to play after a very scary collision in the final minute of the game? If Miami can't pressure QB Julian Sayin without extra rushers, receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate could have a lot of open space in the Hurricanes' secondary.
Orange Bowl
No. 4 Texas Tech (12-1) vs. No. 5 Oregon (12-1)
Jan. 1 | Noon ET | ESPN | Oregon -1.5 | Total: 52.5
It's the first time either team has appeared in the Orange Bowl and the longest possible road trip Oregon could have this postseason.
The Ducks blitzed James Madison from the start on Saturday nightin a game that was over as soon as Oregon scored its first touchdown. That win set up what could be the most intriguing quarterfinal of a very interesting second round.
Both Oregon and Texas Tech are capable of getting to the national championship game and even winning it all. Will Tech's defense be the deciding factor? Oregon's defense was far from dominant against JMU — the Dukes can blame themselves for offensive mistakes that prevented the game from being closer than it was. The Red Raiders, meanwhile, need to convert their red-zone opportunities into touchdowns and not field goals.
Rose Bowl
No. 1 Indiana (13-0) vs. No. 9 Alabama (11-3)
Jan. 1 | 4 p.m. ET | ESPN | Indiana -6.5 | Total: 48.5
The Crimson Tide snapped out of an early-game funk with aplomb on Friday night. Alabama trailed 17-0 to Oklahomabefore scoring 27 straight points in a 34-24 win.As Alabama tied the game at 17-17 before halftime, the Tide blocked a punt after a drop by Oklahoma's punter and got a pick-6.
But this is still a very flawed Alabama team. The Tide had fewer than 70 sack-adjusted rushing yards on Friday; 30 of those came on one run by Daniel Hill. Wide receiver Ryan Williams has dropped 10 passes this season.
Indiana's defense gives up fewer than 78 rushing yards a game. Alabama's going to have a hard time getting out of its rushing funk. And the Hoosiers have the Heisman winner in QB Fernando Mendoza, too. In any other year, it'd be weird to say that Indiana has the better team. But it's true this season.
You're also going to be reminded over the next two weeks that Indiana coach Curt Cignetti was an assistant on Nick Saban's staff for five seasons from 2007 through 2011 and that Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer was the offensive coordinator at Indiana before he became the head coach at Fresno State.
Sugar Bowl
No. 3 Georgia (12-1) vs. No. 6 Ole Miss (12-1)
Jan. 1 | 8 p.m. ET | ESPN | Georgia -6.5 | Total: 55.5
It's the fourth all-SEC Sugar Bowl ever. And did you know that Ole Miss has played in all four of those games? The most recent came in 1964, when Alabama beat Ole Miss 12-7.
It's also the second straight playoff rematch for the Rebels. After beating Tulane in Week 4,Ole Miss beat the Green Wave again on Saturday. And now the Rebels get to attempt to avenge their only loss of the season after a 43-35 loss to Georgia on Oct. 18.
Georgia has allowed 21 points or fewer points in each of its last six games after that win over Ole Miss and no one has scored more than 10 against the Bulldogs in their last four games. What can Ole Miss scheme up without Lane Kiffin around to break that streak? And will Kewan Lacy be healthy after leaving Saturday's game early with an apparent shoulder injury?
