by : Shania Wolfe
The College Football Playoff bracket was revealed Sunday afternoon, just three weeks before LSU, Ohio State, Clemson and Oklahoma will meet in the semifinals.
Both semifinals are on Dec. 28. No. 1 seed LSU will faceoff at No. 4 seed Oklahoma at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
The other semifinal will pit No. 2 seed Ohio State against No. 3 seed Clemson at the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
The Washington Post reports that Clemson opened on Sunday as a one-point favorite over Ohio State, though that number quickly went up, and Clemson was favored by 2 by Monday.
After opening as an 11-point favorite over Oklahoma, LSU was up to a 13-point favorite on Monday.
According to The Washington Post, this is LSU’s first appearance in the semifinals. After years of uncertain consistency on offense, the Tigers (13-0) remade themselves as a serious contender thanks to the combination of quarterback Joe Burrow and passing game coordinator Joe Bardy, and after LSU routed Georgia, 37-10, in the SEC championship game.
Burrow set the Southeastern Conference record for single-season passing yards and tied the record for touchdowns during the regular season, when the Tigers averaged nearly 50 points per game.
According to ESPN, The Buckeyes and the Big Ten are back in the playoffs for the first time since Ohio State’s semifinal appearance in 2016-17.
Ohio State (13-0) maintained its 19-game winning streak with a second-half comeback against Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game Saturday.
While quarterback Justin Fields and defensive end Chase Young were predictably dominant; Young dealt with two or more blockers on most downs. The real star was running back J.K. Dobbins, who is the nation’s fourth-leading rusher during the regular season.
During their showdown with the Virginia, Clemson responded to an early Cavaliers touchdown with a vicious run in a 62-17 victory in Charlotte.
According to sportingnews.com, quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who had 20 touchdowns and no interceptions in his last six games, added 302 years and four touchdowns against the Cavaliers. Running back Travis Etienne had 114 yards, his eighth game over 100 yards this season.
Oklahoma will take a fourth spot after a dramatic 30-23 victory against Baylor in the Big 12 championship game. Oklahoma has won five straight conference championships, and quarterback Jalen Hurts could be a Heisman Trophy finalist.
Hurts was 30-of-42 passing for 297 yards with all of this touchdown’s coming after Baylor took a 28-3 lead early in the second quarter.
Although LSU enters as a double-digit favorite, Oklahoma has not appeared in the College Football Playoff before. This will be the biggest game for both teams.
Catch LSU and Oklahoma facing off at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta at 4.P.M. on Dec. 28. ; and then tune into the OSU and Clemson game at the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona at 8.P.M. on Dec. 28.
Both games will be broadcasted on ESPN.
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