The 12-team College Football Playoff format is finally giving us all the excitement we wanted. Not just from a seeding standpoint and the automatic bids, but from the perspective that big matchups matter. So with three top-10 matchups in just the first week of the college football season, the outcomes could very well implode the CFP rankings when they release.
The AP top 25 rankings blessed us with a riveting Week 1 and because of it, the implications on the College Football Playoff resumes take the forefront. There’s at least five games that could have major implications. Here are the matchups that highlight an exciting start to the college football season.
No. 1 Texas Longhorns at No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes
This game matters for a number of reasons. For one, the loser will face overrated accusations for most of the season. Ohio State has a clear path to defend its 2024 championship and in a rematch of one of last year’s semifinal games, the Buckeyes are the favorite, even if they’re the “underdog”.
On top of that, Arch Manning gets his first real test right out of the gate. This means that if he fails to make a solid impression, pundits are going to just question if he deserves to be a Heisman Trophy favorite, but also if he’s destined to continue the legacy of Manning’s dominating college football.
Ohio State doesn’t have that strong of a schedule. They have three preseason ranked opponents outside of Texas, the Longhorns have four. Of course preseason rankings don’t really mean much, but the loser of this game could have an uphill battle to get back into one of the four first-round bye slots.
No. 9 LSU Tigers at No. 4 Clemson Tigers
Brian Kelly won’t have many excuses if he suffers a third-straight season opening loss in his LSU tenure. This one will probably hurt the most, too, because it could be a massive resume builder. Winning at Clemson would let the CFP selection committee and the CFP world know LSU is destined for real success this year.
LSU came up short in the CFP race last year with consecutive losses to Texas A&M and Florida. As for Clemson, they’re one of my favorites to go on a playoff run. A loss would absolutely kill their playoff resume. They have two other preseason ranked games and let’s be honest, wins over SMU and South Carolina don’t look as good as a win over LSU.
Nobody wants to be the loser of this game because a loss would almost certainly loom over their CFP hopes.
No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish at No. 10 Miami Hurricanes
Like Clemson, the Miami Hurricanes can’t afford a Week 1 loss. The Hurricanes have just two preseason ranked opponents on their schedule in No. 15 Florida and No. 16 SMU. If there’s one team that knows what missing the CFP with bad losses is, it’s the Hurricanes. Notre Dame has a new quarterback in CJ Carr.
The Fighting Irish don’t have the luxury of a conference championship game to carry them. They were able to sneak into the CFP despite a home loss to Northern Illinois last year. I don’t think they’ll be as lucky this year. Within the first two games of the season, we’ll know if Notre Dame can return to the CFP.
A loss to Miami makes it less confident. As for Miami, a loss to Notre Dame makes it clear Carson Beck wasn’t the answer and it will be a long season of what ifs.