Raucous scene at Notre Dame immediately proves the 12-team playoff was a perfect idea

Notre Dame is an elite program with a rich college football history, but there has never been a game quite like this in South Bend before. It is essentially an Indiana state championship with the No. 10 Hoosiers coming to town to take on the No. 7 Fighting Irish in the first-ever first-round game of the 12-team College Football Playoff! The stakes could not be any higher, as it is truly win or go home.

There was some skepticism about expanding the playoff field from four teams to 12. After last year having six teams of quality but only four spots available, playoff expansion could not have come at a better time. But while Oregon fans may feel differently, there is not an elite team in college football this season. It is anyone's guess as to who could prove victorious in the end in Atlanta in over a month.

From the early looks of it, them Indiana boys are having one of them Indiana nights in South Bend. While it is not exactly the last dance with Mary Jane in the land of Touchdown Jesus, it is the hottest ticket in town in the college football world. You can feel the energy emanate throughout Notre Dame stadium, onto the field, into the crowd and through the television screen. The atmosphere is electric!

No, I won't back down from this observation: Home games in the playoff are the way to go for sure.

Notre Dame Stadium is living proof why home playoff games are amazing

In time, these first-round playoff games may lose their luster. In time, weather may become a factor northern schools have to reconsider. But for now, this just feels right. Had the so-called Indiana state championship been played in Bloomington in the home of the Hoosiers, I am certain the IU crowd would have made the college football world proud. I cannot wait to see what tomorrow will bring us!

We have seen several incredible home games with high stakes before throughout college football history, but nothing quite like this. Surely, we will see Happy Valley, DKR and The Horseshoe be as fired up throughout the day tomorrow. While this being a night game probably helps amplify the intensity even more so at Notre Dame, the energy would probably be comparable if it were at noon.

Overall, we have to remember one thing when it comes to the College Football Playoff. It is a TV product, one that ESPN, Turner and us as the consumers will reap the benefits from. To have some of the most iconic stadiums in the college football world bursting with excitement on every play is a win for everyone, even the losers ... who get lucky sometimes. You cannot put a price on this exposure!

So don't come around here no more with any slander over there being too many teams in the playoff.