The first round of the expanded College Football Playoff is in the books and it went just about as expected, with comfortable victories for all four teams hosting the first ‘home’ games in College Football Playoff history. Whether it was due to home field advantage or because of the gulf in quality between the opponents, it’s clear the level of balance in the matchups was not quite what the CFP committee was hoping for.

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Indiana 17 @ Notre Dame 27

On a frigid night in South Bend, Notre Dame Stadium pulsated under thousands of gold towels that the fervent crowd waved above their heads in anticipation of seeing the Fighting Irish play at home in the postseason, willing them to their first ever Playoff victory. Coming off the best season in the school’s history, the Indiana Hoosiers were looking to prove they could hang with the blue-blood programmes after criticisms of their weak schedule and finding themselves undone at the hands of Ohio State in the regular season.

Things were relatively even early on, with both Riley Leonard and Kurtis Rourke throwing interceptions. Although Xavier Watts’ pick saw the Irish starting at their own two-yard line, Jeremiah Love then exploded up the sideline, taking it all 98-yards to the endzone (the longest play in CFP history) and giving Notre Dame a lead they never relinquished.

Notre Dame dominated in the trenches throughout, as they have done all season, creating constant pressure on Rourke and holding the Hoosiers to just 71 yards rushing. Leonard was efficient, if unspectacular, finding Jordan Faison for a 44-yard TD, whilst also running for a score himself and setting a new school record for rushing TDs with 15.

Notre Dame’s reward is a trip to the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans to face Georgia, now led by backup QB Gunner Stockton in what will be his first career start for the Bulldogs.

SMU 10 @ Penn State 38

Penn State kicked off their postseason campaign with a fabled ‘whiteout’ game at Beaver State, and SMU not only found themselves up against one of the toughest defences in college football, but also a wall of sound created by the more than 100,000 white-clad fans in an atmosphere that is a far cry from what the Mustangs are used to at the considerably smaller Gerald J. Ford Stadium in suburban Dallas.

Kevin Jennings’ two pick-sixes created an early 14-0 deficit and essentially killed the game for SMU. A third pick for Jennings late in the game was the final nail. The turnovers allowed the Nittany Lions offense to some rhythm, although it was nowhere near to the late explosiveness of the Big 10 championship game against Oregon. Drew Allar passed for just 127 yards and no touchdowns but rushing scores from Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen (two) put the game beyond reach for the Mustangs.

Penn State appear to have lucked out by losing their championship with what is probably the easiest route to the National Championship. Next up are Mountain West champs Boise State.

Clemson 24 @ Texas 38

Clemson QB and Austin native Cade Klubnik returned to Texas intent on causing an upset and he was not far from it with a second half comeback that saw the Tigers pull within a score of the Longhorns after being down 31-10 in the third quarter. However, Klubnik’s 336 passing yards weren’t quite enough to keep up with a Texas offense that, unlike in the SEC championship game against Georgia, was firing on all cylinders.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian opted to stick with Quinn Ewers under center, despite rumblings that he could, and possibly should, switch to Arch Manning after his performance in the championship game. Ewers’ mistakes have been costly in previous games but Sarkisian’s faith in his starter paid off with 202 yards passing and just the one error, an interception by R. J. Mickens. However, it was the ground game that stole the show, with Jaydon Blue and Quintrevion Wisner rushing for 146 and 110 yards respectively and two touchdowns apiece. Blue’s 77-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter buried Clemson’s hopes of a spectacular comeback.

Clemson proved they were not just also-rans, as their ACC title essentially ousted Alabama from the Playoff, but Texas are back to playing how they wish they had played against Georgia in the title game. Based off this performance, the Longhorns will be heavy favourites over Arizona State when they meet in the Peach Bowl.

Tennessee 17 @ Ohio State 42

Ohio State looked the complete opposite to the team that fell to its fourth straight loss to Michigan to end the regular season as they routed their SEC opposition. Head Coach Ryan Day stated after the game that ‘we called this game more aggressively’, which they certainly did. The Buckeyes leaned much more heavily on the passing game, with standout receiver Jeremiah Smith posting 103 yards and two touchdowns. QB Will Howard played his best game of the season with 311 yards and two scores through the air, while running back tandem Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson added two touchdowns each to compound the Volunteers’ misery.

Ohio State made their intentions clear early on, racing out to a 21-0 lead before the end of the first quarter. Tennessee responded with three consecutive punts as promising QB Nico Iamaleava was hounded by the Buckeyes pass rush, facing constant pressure and being sacked four times. Iamaleava finished the game with his lowest passing total of the season with only 104 yards.

After what was probably their most complete performance of the season, Ohio State will be looking to avenge their narrow defeat to CFP favourites Oregon during the regular season. Expect fireworks when the Buckeyes and Ducks clash in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day.