There was a distinct lack of drama in the first round of the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff.
All four opening-round games were decided by double figures, including blowout wins by No. 6 Penn State (38-10 over No. 11 SMU) and No. 8 Ohio State (42-17 over No. 9 Tennessee).
The format of the 12-team playoff — the five highest-ranked conference champions received automatic bids with the top four champions getting a first-round bye — has come under fire after the first-round results.
Oregon, the No. 1 overall seed, is an underdog to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. Second-seeded Georgia is a small favorite over No. 7 Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl.
Meanwhile, No. 5 Texas and Penn State, the SEC and Big Ten runners-up, are both double-digit favorites in the quarterfinals over No. 4 Arizona State and No. 3 Boise State, respectively.
Is it fair that Oregon and Georgia have essentially received a quarterfinal penalty for winning their conferences? Or were the first-round byes enough of a reward for the Big Ten and SEC champions?
When asked about the College Football Playoff format during Monday’s press conference, Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson said it’s not for him to decide. The Broncos (12-1) will take on Penn State (12-2) in the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31.
“I’m asked a lot of questions about things I don’t control,” Danielson said. “I’m asked about transfer portal, I’m asked about NIL, I’m asked about College Football Playoff format. Those are no things that I decide. So when the College Football Playoff came out and how the format was going to happen, that’s what we went on to attack. Looking at it from our team in the offseason, we knew that … each game we had was a playoff game, and what that would mean at the end of the season was up to us handling it week to week.
“At the end of the season at 12-1, winning our Mountain West Conference championship game, we fully believed we deserved the right to get a first-round bye. If that didn’t happen, if all of a sudden they put us at a different seed, we’d be fired up to play the game. Because those are things we don’t control. I’m not on the College Football Playoff committee; they are not calling me asking me how they should change it. So it’s not something I think about a lot. I do believe our team has earned the right through 13 games to get a first-round bye and play in the Fiesta Bowl. I believe that and I tell teams to watch the film.”
The film shows plenty of junior tailback Ashton Jeanty, who leads the nation in carries (344) rushing yards (2,497) and rushing touchdowns (29). Jeanty, the Heisman Trophy runner-up, is 132 yards away from breaking Barry Sanders’ FBS single-season rushing record.
Danielson believes the new system is much better than previous formats that wouldn’t have included Boise State and Arizona State.
“Everybody knew going into the season what the playoff format was, and it was our job to handle every single week throughout the regular season to win a championship and put ourselves in this situation,” he said. “I do love the College Football Playoff as an expansion because it gives everybody a shot. What’s going to happen at the end of the year, who’s going to win the national championship, nobody knows. But across all FBS teams, when you start the season, everybody is at a level playing field, everybody’s got a shot.”
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