Welp, the college football version of Selection Sunday has come and gone and there are plenty of headlines to talk about. While fans of the SMU Mustangs are elated, folks who support the Alabama Crimson Tide, Ole Miss Rebels, or Miami Hurricanes woke up with a hangover-like feeling on Monday, December 9th.
Now that the first-ever 12-team bracket has been set, people from all over the country will be tuning in to see how their favorite teams perform. Our college football insider presents his fearless predictions and bracket picks for all First Round games below. The action starts on Friday, December 20th and continues through Saturday, December 21st. Good luck!
Friday, December 20 - 8:00 PM EST
This is quite possibly the biggest college football game that's ever taken place in the state of Indiana. Devoted fans from both the Hoosiers and Fighting Irish will fight for state-wide bragging rights in what should be a fantastic game. Oddsmakers opened this line at Notre Dame -8, but an early flurry of Indiana money sent the point spread down to its current number of Notre Dame -7.5.
Some other sharp money also came in on the Under, which opened at 51.5 points before being bet down to 50.5. The move towards the Under makes sense when you take into consideration the power of both defenses. Indiana and Notre Dame both rank inside the Top 5 in yards per play allowed this season.
Early Lean: I love what Curt Cignetti has done with Indiana and my heart will be pulling for the Hoosiers in this spot. However, my wallet will probably side with the Fighting Irish here at home. I make this line north of double digits, especially when you consider that Indiana looked pretty rough when they played a team with an actual pulse this season.
Saturday, December 21 - Noon PM EST
What a feel-good story the SMU Mustangs have been this season! They looked kind of rough with Preston Stone at QB, but the team looked completely different once Kevin Jennings took over under center. It'll be interesting to see how the Ponies handle the raucous environment in State College, PA.
Penn State put up a heck of a fight against Oregon in the Big Ten Title Game before losing by eight points in a shootout. I have to give James Franklin's boys a lot of credit. I thought the Nittany Lions would fold when they went down 18, but they kept fighting and made it a ball game.
Early Lean: While I probably won't be betting this game, I'm picking Penn State to advance in my CFP bracket. SMU fought back hard against a tough Clemson team in the ACC Championship, but playing Penn State on the road is a totally different beast. Give me the Lions to advance over the Ponies.
Saturday, December 21 - 4:00 PM EST
Clemson is the only three-loss team in this year's CFP bracket and I'm not sure they have the horses to hang with Texas on the road. The Longhorns looked rough against Georgia in the SEC Title Game, but I'm betting on a big bounce back from them in this spot. It's interesting that both of these teams lost to Georgia during the regular season.
Cade Klubnik has had a remarkable season for the Tigers, but he could have his hands full against this Longhorns defense. Texas leads the country in both yards per play allowed and yards per pass allowed.
Early Lean: Give me Texas in this spot all day long. I probably won't bet the Longhorns because I'm never crazy about laying double digits. That said, I do think Texas can run the ball pretty well against Clemson's D-line, which only ranks 76th in yards per rush allowed.
Saturday, December 21 - 8:00 PM EST
I think this matchup may end up being the most entertaining one of the first round. We get a Tennessee team that looked overmatched against Georgia on the road traveling to the Shoe to face Ohio State. The Buckeyes should still be in a foul mood after losing their season finale to Michigan.
Ryan Day always has trouble with Michigan, but he's been pretty much lights out against all other teams in his coaching career. Tennessee does have three wins against Top 25 teams this year, but this is a huge step up in class for them in my opinion. There's a reason Ohio State is favored by more than a TD here at home.
Early Lean: This one should be close for a couple of quarters, but I think the Buckeyes end up winning by double digits. Tennessee has a heck of a defense, but they've yet to face a wide receiver corps of this magnitude. Again, I probably won't bet Ohio State at -7.5 but I'll take them to advance in my CFP bracket.