2024 College Football: CFP Quarterfinal Takeaways
Round 2 of the College Football Playoff has come and gone, and we’re down to just 4 teams. Last week, every higher-seeded team won. This time, the four conference champions with the top 4 seeds, as well as precious bye weeks, all went down. #1 simply ran into a buzz saw. #2 had too many self-inflicted wounds to win with a backup QB. #3 played tough but was humbled in the trenches. #4 battled valiantly but could not overcome a bigger, faster, and stronger opponent. Thus, seeds 5-8 are all into the semifinals. See how they did it in my CFP quarterfinal takeaways! Note: these still aren’t quite bowl games; for those games’ takeaways, click here.
CFP Quarterfinal Game #1 at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl: (6) Penn State 31, (3) Boise State 14
The score might not say it, but this was easily our most competitive CFP game thus far. Nobody gave Boise State a chance, and early on, it looked like those people were totally right. BSU had a good opening drive, but on 4th and 2 at the PSU 28, HC Spencer Danielson opted for the safe route of a field goal. However, K Jonah Dalmas shanked the 45-yard attempt badly. Penn State then ripped off two early touchdown drives with ease. On the first, elite TE Tyler Warren (6/63/2), a favorite of this site, snagged a pass in the back of the end zone. He’d add another TD later on a circus catch despite his defender being in great position.
On the next possession, WR Omari Evans (2/55/1) beat his man so badly that he could slow down and wait for a mediocre Drew Allar throw on a 38-yard TD. Things were about to spiral for the Broncos when Heisman runner-up Ashton Jeanty coughed up a fumble. Luckily, Allar botched a read-option handoff two plays later to give the ball right back. We soon learned what would define this matchup: the running game. On defense, the Nittany Lions sold out to stop Jeanty (30/104), and they did better than anyone has thus far (no Barry Sanders record for him). This came without top prospect Abdul Carter, who left in the 2nd quarter with an injury.
Offensively, Penn State ran right over the Broncos. RBs Kaytron Allen (17/134) and Nick Singleton (12/87/1) each exceeded 7 yards per carry. The lines of scrimmage really told the story here, though things were fairly even in the passing game. Allar (13/25, 171 yards, 3 TDs) didn’t do much beyond the 3 chunk plays described above. Poor Broncos CB Davon Banks couldn’t keep up with Penn State’s weapons. He got picked on relentlessly. Boise State, the FBS sack leaders, took Allar down 4 times, using the blitz very effectively. PSU sacked Maddux Madsen 3 times themselves, as DE Amin Vanover (6 tackles, 2 TFLs, sack, FF) was a menace.
To their credit, Boise State battled back. A 19-yard punt return by Cooper Jones set up a score, and a big Madsen pass on a busted coverage to TE Matt Lauter (4/96/1) earned another, cutting the deficit to 3. Self-inflicted errors kept the Broncos from doing anything more though. A hands to the face penalty wiped out a TD, and Madsen forced a deep ball on 3rd and 25 for an INT. Both teams were highly penalized (PSU: 10/98; BSU: 13/90). Jeanty finally broke a run on a 3rd-and-21 draw, but the drive ended with another Dalmas miss from 38 yards. He wins least valuable player, and the Broncos never recovered from there.
Madsen’s stats (23/35, 304 yards, TD, 3 INTs) look bad, but don’t take them at face value. The first INT looked like a predesigned play, while the last two were desperation shots while down 17. I honestly think he was the better QB in this game; Penn State took away Jeanty and dared Madsen to beat them, and he put up a great fight. These Broncos can run it back next year with most of their stars, but that unfortunately won’t include Jeanty. They should still be among the Group of 6’s best teams, but maybe not by such a wide margin. Penn State’s superior talent level ultimately won out, and their friendly draw has taken them to the semifinals.
CFP Quarterfinal Game #2 at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl: (5) Texas 39, (4) Arizona State 31 (2OT)
This was quite the game, wasn’t it? The heavily favored Longhorns made a small error at the start of the game: LB Morice Blackwell Jr somehow failed to block a punt when he had a clear path, so his contact with the punter gave Arizona State a first down, leading to a field goal. After that, Texas rolled. In just two plays, QB Quinn Ewers (20/30, 322 yards, 3 TDs, INT, rush TD) took his team 77 yards, hitting WR Matthew Golden (7/149/1) for 54 yards and then finding WR DeAndre Moore Jr for a 23-yard TD. ASU then punted, and WR Silas Bolden exploded for a 75-yard return score, opening up a 14-3 lead.
The Longhorns’ advantage stretched to 17-3 after a field goal and two turnovers on down by the Sun Devils. ASU played without injured WR Jordyn Tyson, so unlike Texas, they had a hard time generating explosive plays. They finally produced a good drive by converting on a fake punt from their own 21, but the team’s pesky kicking troubles resurfaced. K Carston Kieffer had a 36-yard FG blocked, and the deficit remained 14 at the half. Throughout the first two quarters, both defensive lines dominated. Texas’ unit is stellar, but Arizona State held the Longhorns to just 53 yards on 1.8 YPC. After the break, the Sun Devils got their break.
ASU failed on 4th and goal at the Texas 2, but the Longhorns fumbled the ensuing snap, recovering it in the end zone for a safety. The Sun Devils scored a field goal off of that, but another Texas TD drive stretched the lead to 24-8 with 10 minutes left in the whole game. Needing some magic, Arizona State’s two biggest playmakers stepped up. QB Sam Leavitt (24/46, 222 yards, INT; 13/60 rushing) scrambled like a madman due to his line’s inability to handle the Texas front. Then came the fifth-place Heisman finisher, RB Cam Skattebo. On 4th and 2, he threw a 42-yard TD pass (it was quite the duck), and Leavitt converted the 2-point attempt.
Skattebo (30/143/2; 8/99 receiving; 1/1, 42 yards, TD passing) was a warrior out there. While he had little room to run in the first half, his bruising style wore down the Longhorns’ defense, and he fought despite being physically ill. He vomited on the sideline and missed a few plays here and there, but he battled. More momentum swung to ASU when Ewers threw a deep INT; he tends to underthrow his deep passes and needs to work on that for the next level. Skattebo then caught a 62-yard bomb, ran for a 2-yard TD, and then ran for the tying 2-point conversion. Texas had plenty of time though, and they drove to the Arizona State 30.
Semi-reliable K Bert Auburn pushed a 48-yard FG to the right, but he got another chance after ASU went 3 and out. This time, he pulled a 38-yard FG to the left, sending us to OT. Getting the ball first, Leavitt converted 3rd and 14 with a great scramble, and Skattebo, who was struggling to remain in the game at that point, scored a TD. Ewers wasn’t done though, hitting Golden on a 28-yard TD to tie things up. He did that on 4th and 13, which had been 4th and 8 before a false start. Both teams had some really ill-timed pre-snap penalties. Before the commercial break even ended, Ewers was firing another TD to TE Gunnar Helm (3/56/1).
Golden snagged the 2-point conversion, and ASU needed 8 points on their next possession. Alas, a last-ditch heave landed in the arms of DB Andrew Mukuba, ending the game. Arizona State should still be really proud of their effort. This team was 3-9 the past two years, dealt with NCAA sanctions, and had been picked to finish last in the Big XII. Instead, they won the conference and pushed the highly talented Longhorns to the brink. The new extension signed by HC Kenny Dillingham is well-deserved. Texas is still great and can compete with anyone. Beating Ohio State next week will require far fewer lapses though; consistency will be key.
CFP Quarterfinal #3 at the Rose Bowl: (8) Ohio State 41, (1) Oregon 21
The game that was supposed to be the highlight of the quarterfinal round ended up basically being a blowout. Week 7’s matchup between these teams was a thriller, but one of the hardest things to do in football is to beat the same team twice in one year. Oregon wasn’t dealt a great hand to begin with; WR Evan Stewart didn’t play due to an injury, and RB Jordan James (7/14) left in the first half with an injury of his own. To be honest though, that might not have mattered a whole lot. Ohio State was largely unstoppable, and they appeared to come into this game on a mission to avenge their previous defeat. Their performance was overkill.
The Buckeyes got the ball first and scored in 3 plays. Freshman WR Jeremiah Smith, who might be the best yet to come out of the OSU receiver factory, blitzed the Ducks faster than he struck against Tennessee. The standout WR challenged Oregon during the week, and he backed it up on the field. He could not be covered, catching 7 passes for 187 yards and 2 scores. His performance was so stellar that it reminded me of Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s showing at the Rose Bowl 3 years ago. Somehow, this kid is only 19 years old. Mark my words: Smith is going to be a top-5 pick in the 2027 NFL draft. He’s so good, he gets this entire paragraph.
The first half was a complete demolition. All of the Buckeyes’ playmakers got involved, including QB Will Howard (17/26, 319 yards, 3 TDs), RBs TreVeyon Henderson (8/94/2) and Quinshon Judkins (17/85), and WRs Smith and Emeka Egbuka (5/72/1). OSU’s defense had Oregon stymied. QB Dillon Gabriel wasn’t playing poorly; he simply found no open receivers, and his line did not hold up at all. The injured James was the team’s leading rusher, and the Buckeyes sacked Gabriel 8 times; he was sacked 13 times total in his first 13 games. All the negative yardage from the sacks meant that Oregon finished with -23 yards rushing as a team.
Oregon tried for a TD before the half and got it, ending a 34-0 shutout. They also managed to score the first 3rd-quarter TD the Buckeyes have given up all season. Gabriel (29/41, 299 yards, 2 TDs) found a rhythm in his final college game, using WR Traeshon Holden (7/116/2) and TE Terrance Ferguson (5/71) to try and spark a comeback. However, OSU’s defense was too good. DE Jack Sawyer had 2 sacks and 3 batted passes; he’s developing into a complete player before our eyes. Fellow DE JT Tuimoloau added 2 sacks of his own, and LB Cody Simon (11 tackles, 2 sacks, PBU) did a bit of everything: coverage, rushing, and run support.
One nice thing I can say (for both teams) is that the game was really clean. Our first penalty, a blatant facemask, didn’t occur until late in the third quarter. We had just 5 accepted fouls overall. Otherwise, all the positives belonged to the Buckeyes. They played a complete game with an extremely talented roster, and thus no unbeaten teams remain. Oregon’s 13-0 start was amazing, and they earned a Big Ten title in their maiden season. It’s Ohio State that’s moving on though, and they look fearsome. At their best, they can beat any team in the country, and they seem to be at their best right now. We may have new title favorites in our midst.
CFP Quarterfinal #4 at the Allstate Sugar Bowl: (7) Notre Dame 23, (2) Georgia 10
Before we get into the game, let’s address the elephant in the room. This game was rescheduled by a day due to a tragic terrorist attack on New Year’s Day in New Orleans. We at Takeaways send our respects and well wishes to all the victims’ families and hope nothing like this ever happens again. Senseless violence does not deter us.
Begrudgingly shift gears toward the game, the biggest question for Georgia was how backup QB Gunner Stockton, who played part of the SEC title game but had never started before, would fare. Carson Beck tore his UCL in that championship game and then turned pro, so this was Stockton’s show no matter what. He didn’t have the best start, fumbling out of bounds on a strip sack. Then again, the Irish had an odd start themselves. DL Bryce Young (no relation to the Carolina QB) committed TWO running into the punter penalties in succession, seeming to really want that block. ND got the ball regardless, but that was pretty dumb.
Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard (15/24, 90 yards, TD; 14/80 rushing) didn’t have a good opening drive himself, as he tried to throw two forward passes during one play. Stockton bounced back on the next drive by going 6/6 passing, but RB Trevor Etienne fumbled in the red zone, killing the possession. We had a kicking duel for most of the first half. Georgia’s Peyton Woodring is one of the country’s best, so he connected from 41 yards out. Notre Dame’s Mitch Jeter, who was great for South Carolina but struggled through a groin injury this year, seemed fully healthy, connecting on all 3 of his attempts from 41, 48, and 47 yards out.
Near the end of the half, with ND up 6-3, the Bulldogs tried to be aggressive. However, Stockton took another strip sack, and the Irish recovered. Leonard threw a TD one play later, and Notre Dame then had Jayden Harrison take the 3rd-quarter kickoff for a 98-yard score. Just like that, the score was 20-3. Clearly, the special teams redeemed themselves after the miscues on the first drive. Stockton (20/32, 234 yards, TD) put up a good fight, but he got little help from the running game. He threw a perfect homerun ball to WR Dylan Bell, but he dropped it. After a 67-yard pass to WR Arian Smith, a sideline interference penalty cost Georgia 15 yards.
Worst of all, down 23-10 at this point, Georgia stopped Notre Dame for a 4th and 1 (after a replay review) inside their own 20. Irish HC Marcus Freeman got creative at the line of scrimmage, rushing the offense back out, causing Georgia to bring their defense back as well. The chaos caused two Bulldogs to jump offsides, extending the drive and allowing Notre Dame to take an additional 5 minutes off the clock. It was that kind of day for Georgia. Their defense was actually stout as usual. Notre Dame only scored 16 points on offense, and 7 came off a turnover inside of their own red zone. Notre Dame’s defense was just better.
They tallied 4 sacks and 9 TFLs against the Stockton-led offense. It was a rough game to have an inexperienced QB, because the Irish focused on the run and dared him to beat them. He nearly did at several points, but the receiving corps with the most drops in the FBS let him down. Let’s face it: Georgia hasn’t been quite the same team this year. They’ve had lulls, and they’ve been nowhere as dominant as in years past. It’s impressive that this version of the Bulldogs won the SEC, but they weren’t winning it all. Notre Dame is playing great, and they can beat Penn State, but they need a bit more from the passing game to do so.