The College Football Playoff Breakdown

 





           Written By: Jack Nevins of Swish Tribune

    The conference championships within college football this weekend have brought great excitement to the remainder of the season and was a very entertaining way to close out the season for some teams. The College Football Playoff is now set, following each conference championship, and many teams that were thought to be included in the final four are absent. Michigan, Washington, Texas, and Alabama remain and will play in the Rose Bowl and the Sugar Bowl on New Year's.

    As we know, Florida State is nowhere to be seen in the CFP, along with national championship favorite, Georgia, and the Buckeyes from Ohio State. Beside the teams that did not go the distance, let's take a look at the games that matter for the national championship.

    
    Number 1, Michigan, and number 4 Alabama will kick off the CFP semifinal at the Rose Bowl, known to be the most historic venue in all of college sports. The Michigan Wolverines went 13-0 this season led by J.J McCarthy and Blake Corum. The Wolverines had notable wins over no. 2 Ohio State, no.10 Penn State, and no.16 Iowa. Although Michigan was able to win over Ohio State and Penn State without their head coach, Jim Harbough, they did not have another big-time win. They also had a weak schedule to start the season encountering no ranked teams. Blake Corum rushed for another 1,000-yard season and J.J. McCarthy did look lights out with a QBR of 85. 8, over 2,600 pass yards, and 19 touchdowns. Can this outstanding run by the team in blue matchup up against the Tide? The Alabama Crimson Tide. A team that many thought would not be playing in the CFP and would either be a 5 or 6 seed behind FSU. The Tide struggled to start the season with a loss in week two to Texas, but ever since, they have thrived under the pressure and the bright lights. Winning over no.15, Ole Miss, no.17 Tennessee, no.14 LSU in back-to-back weeks, and of course the reigning national champion, no.1 Georgia. Jalen Milroe has proven he can thrive under the difficult Nick Saban offense and has gained enough self confidence in himself and his team, saying "Gimme the Heisman", following his game-winning touchdown to Isiah Bond. The Crimson Tide have made themselves true contenders with the win over Georgia in the SEC championship game. 

     The Sugar Bowl between no.2 Washington, and no.3 Texas, will be just as exciting, if not, more exciting than the Rose Bowl. Washington has not failed to disappoint this season. In the last year of the Pac-12, Washington and Oregon have brought some of the most exciting games to college football. Two shootouts, ending in UDub taking the dub both meetings. Washington has had one of the more challenging schedules in college football, especially down the stretch. Three wins in a row for the Huskies, over ranked team: USC, Utah, and Oregon State, showed this Husky team is the real deal. With Michael Penix Jr. at quarterback, a Heisman candidate, and Rome Odunze at receiver recording over 1,400 receiving yards, the Huskies seem nearly unstoppable in this playoff. The Texas Longhorns will be a new challenge Washington has not faced yet. The Texas Longhorns. The are alongside Bama with one loss out of the 4 teams in the playoff. That one loss coming to Oklahoma in the infamous Red River Bowl. The Longhorns have racked up some nice wins over of course, Alabama, no.24 Kansas, no.23, Kansas-State, and no.18 Oklahoma State in the Big-12 championship. Led by Quinn Ewers, and head coach Steve Sarkesian, the Longhorns will be a problem. Jonathon Brooks is merely unstoppable on the ground and will run-down defenses. 

    The 2023-2024 college football season has been very entertaining, but truly, it is just getting started. This CFP will be very interesting without the usual teams of Georgia or Ohio State, but nonetheless, these 4 teams are more exciting to watch. With that being said, who will make it to the national championship. Can the Tide be the true underdog and take down the Wolverines? Or will Washington say "horns down" and take down the Longhorns?











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