First round Indiana at Notre Dame The 12-team CFP began with the first-round game between No. 8 Indiana, the 10-seed, and No. 5 Notre Dame, the 7-seed. It was the 30th all-time meeting between the teams and the first since a Notre Dame win in
1991. The game marked Indiana's CFP debut Notre Dame's longstanding
media rights deal with
NBC meant this was the first Fighting Irish home game since
1990 not to air on NBC. Indiana began the game with the ball and punted on their first drive, and afterward both teams traded interceptions. On the first play of Notre Dame's second drive, running back
Jeremiyah Love rushed for a 98-yard
touchdown, the game's first score. The Fighting Irish doubled their lead on their next drive following a 5-yard touchdown pass from
Riley Leonard to
Jayden Thomas, and each team scored a
field goal late in the second quarter, leading to a halftime score of 17–3.
SMU at Penn State No. 10 SMU, the 11-seed, and No. 4 Penn State, the 6-seed, made their respective CFP debuts in their first-round game, which was their third meeting. Their prior meetings were a
1978 Penn State win and a tie in the
1948 Cotton Bowl Classic. SMU opened the second half by scoring their first points of the contest on a 28-yard field goal by Collin Rogers, and Penn State answered with a Ryan Barker field goal on their first drive of the half. A Rogers miss from 42 yards on SMU's ensuing drive gave Penn State the ball back, and the Nittany Lions drove 75 yards in nine plays to push their lead to 35 points on a 4-yard rush by Allen. SMU punted on their next drive but quickly regained possession following a Brandon Crossley interception, leading to SMU's only touchdown on a 28-yard pass from Jennings to Roderick Daniels Jr. A punt by each team gave the ball back to Penn State, who ran out the clock to conclude the game and advanced to the quarterfinals with a 38–10 win. The game marked Texas's second CFP appearance and Clemson's seventh. Both teams scored on their first possessions of the game, Clemson on a 22-yard pass from
Cade Klubnik to
Antonio Williams and Texas on a 3-yard
Quintrevion Wisner rush. Both touchdown drives spanned 75 yards in 12 plays. Texas took their first lead on a 38-yard rush by
Jaydon Blue that followed a Clemson
three-and-out, and the Longhorns doubled their lead on a 16-yard rush by Wisner after another Clemson punt with seven and a half minutes remaining in the second quarter. Clemson's ensuing drive was cut short when Colin Simmons intercepted Klubnik's pass at the Clemson 26-yard line. A 32-yard field goal by Clemson's
Nolan Hauser was the next scoring play of the game, following a punt by Clemson and an interception of
Quinn Ewers by
R.J. Mickens. Texas pushed their lead to 18 points with 28 seconds remaining in the half with a 19-yard passing touchdown from Ewers to
Gunnar Helm, making the halftime score 28–10. Texas finished their first drive of the second half with a 22-yard
Bert Auburn field goal, extending their lead to 21 points. Both teams traded punts before Clemson scored on a 25-yard pass from Klubnik to
Jarvis Green. Texas drove to the Clemson 36-yard line on their next possession but their fourth down pass fell incomplete, resulting in another turnover on downs. Clemson capitalized with a 10-play drive culminating in a 7-yard pass from Klubnik to
T. J. Moore, and Texas scored a touchdown of their own two plays later on a 77-yard rush by Blue. Clemson reached the Texas 10-yard line in five plays on their ensuing drive but failed to score after turning the ball over on downs at the 1-yard line. Texas fumbled to end their next drive, but Clemson was only able to reach the Texas 26-yard line before another turnover on downs, and the game ended with a 38–24 Texas victory. The Buckeyes made their sixth CFP appearance, while the Volunteers made their CFP debut. The Buckeyes received the ball first and scored on their fifth offensive snap on a 37-yard pass from
Will Howard to
Jeremiah Smith. After forcing a three-and-out by Tennessee, they pushed their lead to 14 points on a 1-yard
Quinshon Judkins rush and shortly afterwards to 21 points on a 29-yard
TreVeyon Henderson rush following another Tennessee punt on their third drive. An interception by Tennessee's
Will Brooks led to the Volunteers' first score, a 36-yard Max Gilbert field goal, with six and a half minutes remaining in the second quarter. Ohio State punted for the first time on their next drive, and Tennessee narrowed the deficit to eleven points after capping a 16-play drive with a 2-yard
Nico Iamaleava touchdown rush. Ohio State advanced the ball to the Tennessee 38-yard line before an unsuccessful 56-yard field goal attempt by
Jayden Fielding ended the half. Ohio State ended Tennessee's run of ten unanswered points with a touchdown on their first drive of the third quarter. After Tennessee opened the half with a punt, the Buckeyes took possession at their own 35-yard line and scored on a 22-yard Howard-to-Smith pass on their sixth play. The Buckeyes scored again on their second and third drives of the half, on runs of 1 and 24 yards by Judkins and Henderson, respectively, while the Volunteers were held to another punt and a turnover on downs. Tennessee scored the game's final points on a 2-yard Iamaleava rush with 1:56 to play. Ohio State was then able to run the clock out to secure a 42–17 victory. Both teams began the game with scoring chances; Boise State's first possession ended with an unsuccessful field goal attempt, and Penn State scored on a pass from
Drew Allar to
Tyler Warren to complete their first drive. Penn State pushed their lead to 14 points on their second drive with a 38-yard pass from Allar to Omari Evans. Both teams fumbled early into their next possessions and then traded punts early in the second quarter. Boise State scored for the first time on an 8-yard rush by Tyler Crowe, capping an eight-play drive with 8:41 remaining until halftime. After each team punted twice, Penn State's Ryan Barker made a 40-yard field goal as the quarter ended and Penn State entered halftime with a 17–7 lead. After a three-and-out by Penn State to begin the third quarter, Boise State drew their deficit down to three points with a 53-yard touchdown pass from
Maddux Madsen to
Matt Lauter. The Nittany Lions reestablished a ten-point lead on their ensuing drive, though, on an Allar-to-Warren touchdown pass. Boise State's next drive concluded with the game's first interception on the first play of the fourth quarter; Madsen's pass was picked off by
Zakee Wheatley at the Penn State 41-yard line. After a Penn State punt, Boise State drove to the Penn State 21-yard line but missed a 38-yard field goal. The game's final scoring play came with just under five minutes remaining on a 58-yard
Nicholas Singleton rush; both of Boise State's final two drives ended with interceptions and Penn State won 31–14 to advance to the semifinals. The Longhorns won the teams' only previous meeting in the
2007 Holiday Bowl 52–34. Both teams opened the game with a score: Arizona State opened the game with a 12-play drive resulting in a 39-yard field goal by Carston Kieffer, and Texas scored in two plays on a 23-yard pass from
Quinn Ewers to
DeAndre Moore Jr. After the Sun Devils went three-and-out, the Longhorns stretched their lead with a 75-yard
Silas Bolden punt return for a touchdown. The teams traded punts before an Arizona State turnover on downs led to a 22-yard
Bert Auburn field goal for the Longhorns. The Sun Devils had an opportunity to answer with a field goal of their own but the 36-yard try was blocked, leading to a 17–3 halftime score. After a Texas punt to begin the second half, Arizona State drove to the Texas 2-yard line but failed to score on 4th & Goal, giving the ball to Texas. The Longhorns fumbled on their next play, leading to a
safety; Arizona State shrunk the deficit to nine points with a field goal on their ensuing drive. Both teams traded touchdowns on their first possessions of the fourth quarter: Texas on a 5-yard Ewers rush and Arizona State on a 42-yard pass from running back
Cam Skattebo to
Malik McClain. The Sun Devils got the ball back quickly following an interception by Javan Robinson; Skattebo scored on a 2-yard rush three plays later and converted the two-point try to tie the game at 24 points apiece. On Arizona State's overtime possession,
Sam Leavitt rushed for 16 yards to convert 3rd & 14 from the Texas 19-yard line, and Skattebo rushed for a 3-yard touchdown on the next play. Texas was held to 4th & 8 from the Arizona State 23-yard line (which became 4th & 13 from the 28-yard line after a false start penalty) on their possession and scored on a touchdown pass to
Matthew Golden; the
PAT tied the game. The Longhorns retook the lead on a pass to Gunnar Helm on the first play of the second overtime and scored their two-point try.
Rose Bowl The second part of the New Year's Day quarterfinal doubleheader matched No. 1 and
Big Ten champion Oregon, making their second CFP appearance, against Ohio State. Entering the game, the Buckeyes led the series 9–2, including two previous Rose Bowl wins (
1958 and
2010) and the
2015 (inaugural) CFP National Championship game. Ohio State began the game with the ball and scored on their third play with a 45-yard
Will Howard pass to
Jeremiah Smith. Oregon went three-and-out on each of their first two drives and also punted to end their third drive, while the Buckeyes doubled their lead on a 42-yard pass from Howard to
Emeka Egbuka and stretched their lead with a 46-yard
Jayden Fielding field goal. From there, Oregon continued with a turnover on downs and two further three-and-outs, while Ohio State scored two additional touchdowns by Smith and
TreVeyon Henderson and added another field goal to take a 34–0 lead. Oregon concluded the quarter with a 5-yard touchdown pass from
Dillon Gabriel to
Traeshon Holden; the two-point try was successful, making the halftime score 34–8. Oregon opened the second half with another touchdown, this time on a 2-yard
Noah Whittington rush. After a punt by each team, Ohio State responded with an 8-yard Henderson touchdown rush to cap a 6-play drive. Each team's next drive ended in another punt, both after four plays, before Oregon drove from their own 49-yard line in ten plays to score on a 27-yard pass from Gabriel to Holden. Oregon opted to attempt another two-point conversion, which was unsuccessful. This was the final scoring play of the contest; Ohio State punted twice more, Oregon punted once more, and the game concluded with a 41–21 Ohio State win. The game was postponed from January 1 following
a terrorist attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans on the morning of New Year's Day. The game's first score came on its fifth drive; each team punted on their first drive, Georgia's second drive ended with a fumble at the Notre Dame 16-yard line, and Notre Dame punted for a second time before Georgia took a 3–0 lead on a 41-yard
Peyton Woodring field goal. Notre Dame tied the game with a field goal of their own by Mitch Jeter on their following possession. After one additional Fighting Irish punt and two more from the Bulldogs, Notre Dame took their first lead with 39 seconds until halftime on another successful field goal. On Georgia's next play, RJ Oben sacked
Gunner Stockton, forcing a fumble, and Junior Tuihalamaka recovered for Notre Dame, leading to a touchdown pass from
Riley Leonard to
Beaux Collins and a 13–3 lead for the Fighting Irish at halftime. Notre Dame extended its lead on the opening kickoff of the second half, which was returned 98 yards for a touchdown by
Jayden Harrison, capping a 17-point Irish run in a span of 54 seconds of game time. Georgia punted on 4th & 3 on their next drive, and the Irish went three-and-out in response. The Bulldogs pulled within ten points on a 5-play drive that followed, ending in a 32-yard touchdown pass from Stockton to Cash Jones, but they were unable to score further. They turned the ball over on downs on each of their final two offensive possessions, while Notre Dame added a 47-yard field goal in addition to a turnover on downs. Ultimately, the Irish ran out the clock to earn a semifinal berth with a 23–10 victory. Penn State received the ball to begin the game, but no scoring took place until their third drive; the Nittany Lions punted on their first two drives, while Notre Dame punted on their first and their second ended with an interception by Zakee Wheatley. After the interception, Penn State took the ball on their own 42-yard line and finished the 14-play drive with a 20-yard Ryan Barker field goal. After a Notre Dame punt, Nicholas Singleton scored the game's first touchdown on a 5-yard rush with over two minutes remaining in the half. The Irish took the remainder of the quarter on their ensuing drive; they scored their first points on a 41-yard Mitch Jeter field goal as time expired, making the halftime score 10–3 in favor of the Nittany Lions. The Fighting Irish tied the game on their first drive of the second half on a 3-yard rush by Riley Leonard. After two punts by Penn State and one by Notre Dame, the Irish took their first lead on the second play of the fourth quarter when Jeremiyah Love rushed for a 2-yard touchdown. This gave Notre Dame a 17–10 lead, though this did not last for long, as Penn State's ensuing seven-play drive resulted in a 7-yard Singleton touchdown rush with ten minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. After a touchback, Penn State resumed possession following an interception by
Dani Dennis-Sutton at the Notre Dame 39-yard line. Penn State capitalized with another 7-yard Singleton touchdown rush five plays later, putting them back in the lead, but a 54-yard pass from Leonard to
Jaden Greathouse tied the game again at 24. Jeter made a 41-yard field goal with seven seconds left, ultimately giving Notre Dame a 27–24 victory and a national championship berth. Texas started with possession, but Ohio State was the first to score; after a Longhorn turnover on downs, Ohio State drove ten plays and finished with a 9-yard rushing touchdown by Quinshon Judkins roughly halfway through the first quarter. Both teams punted on each of their next four drives, though only two of these eight possessions resulted in a three-and-out. The last six of these took place during the second quarter, and Texas tied the game with under thirty seconds left in the half on an 18-yard pass from Quinn Ewers to Jaydon Blue. The ensuing kickoff resulted in a touchback, and Ohio State retook the lead on their next play, a 75-yard touchdown pass from Will Howard to TreVeyon Henderson, with thirteen seconds left. As a result, the Buckeyes led 14–7 at halftime. Ohio State's possession to start the second half was cut short following a
David Gbenda interception at the Texas 30-yard line. Each team punted once before Texas evened the score again on a 26-yard Blue touchdown reception from Ewers. Ohio State punted on their next drive and Texas did the same; Texas's drive was interrupted by the end of the third quarter. After Ohio State resumed possession at their own 12-yard line with 14:40 left in the game, they drove 88 yards in 12 plays to retake the lead on a 1-yard rush by Judkins. That drive took nearly eight minutes, and Texas started their next drive with 6:58 remaining in the game following a touchback. The Longhorns drove to the Ohio State 1-yard line, but took several losses and faced 4th & Goal at the Ohio State 8-yard line. On that play, Ewers fumbled and the ball was recovered by
Jack Sawyer, who returned it 83 yards for a touchdown. Ewers was intercepted by
Caleb Downs on Texas's final drive, giving Ohio State a 28–14 victory. Notre Dame began the game with the ball and capped their 18-play drive with a Riley Leonard touchdown run after nearly ten minutes of possession. That play was the only score of the first quarter, though Ohio State tied the game at seven on their first possession with an 8-yard touchdown from Will Howard to Jeremiah Smith. The Buckeyes ended the first half having scored 21 unanswered points, as Quinshon Judkins recorded a rushing touchdown and a receiving touchdown while the Ohio State defense held Notre Dame to two punts before their fourth drive concluded at halftime. Ohio State continued their scoring streak to begin the third quarter; a 70-yard Judkins rush set up a touchdown several plays later, and the Buckeyes added a 46-yard Jayden Fielding field goal after forcing a turnover on downs on a failed Notre Dame fake punt at the Irish 33-yard line. Notre Dame cut the Ohio State lead to sixteen points with a Jaden Greathouse touchdown reception on the next drive and set themselves up for a short field goal try after an Ohio State fumble, but the 27-yard kick was missed by Jeter. After a Buckeye punt, Notre Dame narrowed the deficit to eight points following another touchdown reception by Greathouse and a two-point pass. On Ohio State's ensuing drive, they gained 56 yards on 3rd & 11 to prolong the possession and finished with a 33-yard field goal with 26 seconds remaining. That was the final scoring play of the game, giving Ohio State a 34–23 championship victory. ==Aftermath==