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Winners and Losers of 2025 College Football Playoff Quarterfinals
The quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff began with a massive upset as Miami stunned Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl.
And the drama continued with a fascinating Thursday of action.
Early on, Oregon stifled Texas Tech with a superb Orange Bowl shutout. Indiana then annihilated Alabama—and a lazy narrative—with a Rose Bowl triumph, and Ole Miss' win over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl capped the night.
The results have set the stage for an exciting semifinal round with a Big Ten rematch of Indiana and Oregon and a rare showdown between Miami and Ole Miss.
Come for the winners and losers, stay for a steaming hot take.
Winner: Miami's Defense
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Heading into the Cotton Bowl, the path to a Miami victory over Ohio State seemed to require a key takeaway or two.
Turns out, that's exactly what happened.
Star nickelback Keionte Scott jumped a screen pass and returned it 72 yards for a touchdown, giving the Hurricanes a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter. Jakobe Thomas later sealed the upset with an interception.
Even beyond Scott's highlight-reel moment, Miami's defense was the story. Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor combined for three sacks, and the 'Canes collected seven tackles for loss. The aggressive unit limited OSU to a 3-of-10 mark on third downs and a modest 332 yards in the 24-14 upset.
Miami's offense made a few critical plays and conversions, and that Carson Beck-led group is plenty dangerous in its own right.
But this defense is what makes the 'Canes a title contender.
Loser: Ryan Day
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Welcome back to a hot seat, Ryan Day.
Sure, we can entertain the conversation of whether that should be the case. Ohio State won a national championship all the way back in—checks notes—the 2024 season and is consistently in the College Football Playoff.
Although the title-or-bust mentality around the program is a bit unreasonable, the frustration is understandable.
In four of the Buckeyes' last five losses, they've scored no more than 14 points. Additionally, Day is directly responsible for Wednesday's issues after taking play-calling duties from now-USF head coach Brian Hartline. That decision felt unsettling when announced and looked even worse in reality.
Again, don't forget some nuance here. Ohio State is 79-11 with a handful of CFP appearances and a national title in Day's seven years at the helm.
But there's no question Day must be able to adapt quickly, or else the vocal fan base would only get louder about its displeasure.
Winner: Miami, the Program
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The brand is well-known. The struggles are, too. Mario Cristobal hasn't been immune to shockingly bad mistakes while reviving the 'Canes, either.
Miami, though, is more relevant today than anytime in the last 22 years.
This—being on the doorstep of a shot at a national championship—is why Cristobal left a comfortable Oregon job to return home to his alma mater. This—a physical, relentless team—is what Cristobal envisioned that contender would look and play like along the way.
Four years ago, Cristobal arrived to a program in disarray. He needed to convince high schoolers of a vision—one not easily seen as Middle Tennessee put up 507 yards in a stunning upset or Florida State trounced UM by 42 points.
Now, that recruiting pitch is much easier because it's based in fact.
Miami is 12-2 with a Sunshine State sweep of Florida, Florida State and USF. It defeated Texas A&M on the road, never trailed in the upset of No. 2 Ohio State and is headed to the CFP semifinals.
The U isn't back. But it's closer than anytime in the last 22 years.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Winner: Oregon CB Brandon Finney Jr.
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True freshman? No problem. He's been stellar all season.
Brandon Finney Jr. assembled a career day in the 23-0 win over Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl. The young corner snatched an interception and recovered a fumble in the second quarter, then picked off another pass early in the fourth.
All told, he collected six tackles in addition to three takeaways. It was a well-deserved MVP moment for an emerging star.
Finney, a top-40 prospect in the 2025 cycle, enrolled at Oregon in time for spring practice. He quickly made a great impression, locked down a starting job and then garnered second-team All-Big Ten recognition.
Oregon blanked Texas Tech because of the defense as a whole, but Finney made the splashy plays and announced himself to a national audience.
Loser: Texas Tech Defense
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Normally, a "loser" is a disappointment. This situation is different.
Although the 23-0 final score may suggest Texas Tech struggled on both sides, the truth is the Red Raiders had a spectacular game on defense.
Oregon only gained 309 yards at a measly 3.8 per snap, finishing 8-of-27 on third and fourth downs combined. Tech's ferocious unit forced two turnovers on downs and grabbed an interception.
Yes, the Red Raiders yielded 23 points, but three of Oregon's five scoring drives combined to cover 42 yards yet produced 17 points. In other words: This group was truly responsible for just six points allowed.
The defense put together a championship-level effort yet watched the offense squander any and every opportunity to make it a competitive game.
Winner: Curt Cignetti
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It just keeps getting better. And it's all thanks to him.
From the moment Curt Cignetti stepped on campus in Bloomington, he's been a force. His confidence and execution has reshaped expectations at a football program that genuinely never knew success in the modern era.
Last season, it was breaking a school record for victories with 11 and reaching the Playoff. This year, it was IU's first outright Big Ten championship since 1945—and another single-season record that is only growing. Thanks to a 38-3 demolition of Alabama, the Hoosiers are a perfect 14-0.
What he's doing at Indiana is nothing short of staggering.
Alabama didn't simply lose to the Hoosiers in the Rose Bowl. No, that was an absolute beatdown. Fernando Mendoza, the program's first-ever Heisman Trophy winner, had three touchdown passes compared to two incompletions. Indiana outgained the hapless Crimson Tide 407-193.
Cignetti has obliterated every expectation of both what he would do for IU and what the program—one with zero 10-win years before him—could ever be.
Loser: Alabama's Running Game
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When we say the Crimson Tide did nothing on the ground in the Rose Bowl, that can almost be taken in its truest, most literal form.
Alabama turned 14 non-sack carries into a measly 48 yards.
Honestly, it was a fitting way to end a historically bad season for Bama's ground game. ESPN's David Hale shared the Crimson Tide finished with 104.1 rushing yards per game in the 2025 season, making the worst average output in the last 50 years by more than 30 yards.
Nobody is expecting Bama to produce a Heisman winner in the backfield like Mark Ingram or Derrick Henry. That's not the point.
However, the Tide's top runners—Jam Miller, Daniel Hill and Kevin Riley—closed the campaign with 504, 284 and 224 yards, respectively. It took 15 games for Alabama to have three players combine for 1,000 rushing yards.
Wednesday's horrid loss punctuated Bama's struggles on the ground.
Winner: Sugar Bowl Drama
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That was a banger, folks.
In a rematch of a great regular-season game, Georgia and Ole Miss put on another show in the Sugar Bowl.
Ole Miss jumped out to a 6-0 advantage, then the lead changed hands a couple of times before UGA held a 21-12 halftime edge. Entering the fourth quarter, Georgia clung to a 24-19 margin.
And the final 15 minutes were awesome.
Trinidad Chambliss guided the Rebels to a 34-24 lead after a pair of touchdown drives, and UGA responded with a score of its own. The officials missed a clear facemask penalty on Georgia, which capitalized on the gift—converting a gutsy fourth down—with a game-tying field goal.
Facing a 3rd-and-5 in the final minute, Ole Miss stayed aggressive as Chambliss placed a beautiful ball to De'Zhaun Stribling for a clutch 40-yard gain. The reception set up Lucas Carneiro for a potential game-winning 47-yard field goal.
And he drilled it.
Miami's victory over Ohio State included a dramatic second half. But after a pair of comfortable wins early on Thursday, Ole Miss capped the evening in style.
Loser: The First-Round Bye Narrative
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I understand why it happened.
For years, NFL fans have argued the "rest vs. rust" conversation in the playoffs. So when Miami upended Ohio State and Oregon blanked Texas Tech, there was a natural storyline to explore.
Through six games of the 2024 and 2025 CFPs, the programs that had a first-round bye were a perfectly imperfect 0-6.
Look, the debate has merit. I think it's ridiculous to have 20-plus days between games for Playoff teams. That's an unnecessary long layoff.
But consider the context.
In the first season of the 12-team format, the four highest-ranked conference champions landed a bye. That was poor planning, evidenced in Boise State and Arizona State entering their respective quarterfinals as double-digit underdogs.
Additionally, Georgia had just lost quarterback Carson Beck to a season-ending elbow injury. Notre Dame, as a result, was a slight favorite anyway.
The postseason calendar should be condensed, but simply pointing to an 0-6 record is incredibly lazy analysis.
Indiana's near-perfect performance against Bama only backs up that reality.
Winner: A Fresh Champion
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I like dynasties! Sustained excellence should be applauded because it's incredibly difficult to consistently win at a high level.
Championship fatigue is a real thing for fans, though.
Alabama has reigned over much of the last 20 years, while Ohio State has basically always been a contender in that stretch. Georgia has become a powerhouse since Kirby Smart's arrival a decade ago, as well.
But they're all eliminated. The semifinalists are Indiana, Miami, Ole Miss and Oregon—a quartet of rare potential winners.
Miami won the most recent crown, but that was still 25 years ago in 2001. Ole Miss hasn't claimed a title in more than 60 years, and neither Indiana nor Oregon have ever won a national championship.
We will be celebrating a fresh champion in the 2025 season.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
