College Football National Championship 2015: Schedule and Predictions for Title

Observers have long called for a new system to determine a true champion in college football, and that will finally come to fruition in 2015 in the form of the College Football Playoff.

With No. 2 Oregon set to face No. 3 Florida State in the Rose Bowl and No. 1 Alabama battling No. 4 Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl, there are four deserving teams still alive and vying for a national championship.

The CFP semifinals must first play out before the championship game can be determined, but college football fans are already inevitably clamoring to see who will duke it out for the College Football Playoff National Championship Trophy.

Here is a full breakdown of what to expect from the inaugural College Football Playoff.

Game	Date	Time (ET)	Venue	Team 1	Team 2
Rose Bowl	Thursday, Jan. 1	4:30 p.m.	Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California	Oregon	Florida State
Sugar Bowl	Thursday, Jan. 1	8:30 p.m.	Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans	Alabama	Ohio State
College Football Championship Game	Monday, Jan. 12	8:30 p.m.	AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas	TBD	TBD

National Championship Predictions

Rose Bowl

Despite winning the 2014 national championship and going undefeated during the regular season, Florida State enters the Rose Bowl as a fairly substantial underdog against a red-hot Oregon team.

It is easy to understand why there is so much hype surrounding the Ducks, as they have scored at least 42 points in each of their past eight games and won all of those contests by double digits as well. Conversely, the Seminoles have had to scratch and claw for nearly all of their victories over the past couple months.

With that said, there is some concern about whether Oregon can get physical and go toe-to-toe with the Noles. While there is no doubt the Ducks like to use their speed and athleticism to their advantage, FSU defensive coordinator Charles Kelly knows they aren't one-dimensional, according to FSU Football on Twitter:

Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Marcus Mariota can do a little bit of everything for Oregon, so the Florida State defense must always be mindful of him. At the same time, 2013 Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston leads a Seminoles offense that is no pushover either, as it averages nearly 35 points per game.

Perhaps the biggest thing working in FSU's favor, though, is the two-headed rushing attack of rookie Karlos Williams and freshman Dalvin Cook, especially after the latter gashed Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship Game.

Per Natalie Pierre of AL.com, Florida State wide receiver Rashad Greene believes that gives his team an advantage:

Many are writing the Seminoles off since they have been surviving by the skin of their teeth, but that's what they do. They're a resilient bunch and absolutely talented enough to compete with Oregon.

Florida State has been living dangerously this season, though, and it will ultimately get burned as Mariota will lead the Ducks to a narrow, but spectacular, win.

Sugar Bowl

The second CFP semifinal will pit two of the greatest programs in college football history against each other when No. 1 Alabama clashes with No. 4 Ohio State in New Orleans.

While the Crimson Tide did lose to Ole Miss earlier in the season, most prognosticators have considered them the best and most talented team in the nation for much of the year. The Buckeyes, on the other hand, really had to earn respect after falling to a mediocre Virginia Tech team in their second game.

These two teams took very different routes to get to this point, but they're both deserving. A Crimson Tide win is the expectation due to the fact that they are playing so well on both sides of the ball right now. Everyone knows about their fourth-rated defense, but their offense is firing on all cylinders as well.

Wide receiver Amari Cooper was a Heisman candidate and the running back duo of T.J. Yeldon and Derrick Henry is tough to slow down. Most impressively, though, Blake Sims has risen to the occasion in his first season as a starter. According to this stat, courtesy of ESPN's John Buccigross, he has quietly performed like an elite signal-caller in 2014:

Bama doesn't have much to worry about under center, but the Buckeyes certainly do. They are currently on their third quarterback with both Braxton Miller and J.T. Barrett out for the season. Sophomore Cardale Jones was great in the Big Ten Championship Game against Wisconsin, but that is pretty much the extent of his collegiate experience.

Even so, OSU head coach Urban Meyer seems confident in his quarterback, per Ohio State Buckeyes athletics on Twitter:

As solid as Jones was against the Badgers, Alabama has an elite defense that tends to eat inexperienced quarterbacks for breakfast.

Ohio State has fought against adversity and done some great things this season; however, Alabama's discipline, coaching and championship resume will prove to be a bit too much.

Title Game

A projected title game of Alabama vs. Oregon is what the CFP committee anticipates based on its rankings, and there is certainly reason to believe the voters are on the money in that regard.

Although it may not be 100 percent true statistically, it can be argued that this potential matchup would feature the nation's best offense in Oregon and best defense in Alabama. Because of that, such a National Championship Game could truly go either way.

As dominant as the Crimson Tide defense can be at times, it hasn't encountered an offense with the speed and skill of Oregon's. Not only do the Ducks have the best all-around quarterback in college football, but they also have a nearly 1,300-yard rusher in Royce Freeman and six pass-catchers with at least 350 receiving yards.

Bama can account for some of those players, but it is inevitable that someone will be open and available to make plays on any given snap.

Oregon has been so close to reaching the top of the mountain in recent years only to fall just short, but it simply feels like the Ducks are the team to beat, especially if they can pick up the boost of ending Florida State's undefeated streak entering the title game.

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