College Football Playoff 2018-19: Full Bowl Schedule, Championship Predictions
A long, winding road through the regular season finally delivered us to the bowl season, and it won't be long before college football's best are battling it out in the 2018-19 College Football Playoff.
Alabama, Oklahoma, Georgia and Notre Dame made the final cut to fight in the Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl for a place in the College Football National Championship.
There's plenty to take in between now and then, though, so let's run through the bowl schedule and peep into our crystal ball to see how the semifinals could play out.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
2018 Bowl Schedule
All Times ET.
Thursday, Dec. 20
Gasparilla Bowl (8 p.m., ESPN): Marshall vs. South Florida
Friday, Dec. 21
Bahamas Bowl (12:30 p.m., ESPN): Florida International vs. Toledo
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (4 p.m., ESPN): Western Michigan vs. BYU
Saturday, Dec. 22
Birmingham Bowl (12 p.m., ESPN): Memphis vs. Wake Forest
Armed Forces Bowl (3:30 p.m., ESPN): Houston vs. Army
Dollar General Bowl (7 p.m., ESPN): Buffalo vs. Troy
Hawaii Bowl (10:30 p.m., ESPN): Hawaii vs. Louisiana Tech
Wednesday, Dec. 26
First Responder Bowl (1:30 p.m., ESPN): Boston College vs. Boise State
Quick Lane Bowl (5:15 p.m., ESPN): Minnesota vs. Georgia Tech
Cheez-It Bowl (9 p.m., ESPN): California vs. TCU
Thursday, Dec. 27
Independence Bowl (1:30 p.m., ESPN): Temple vs. Duke
Pinstripe Bowl (5:15 p.m., ESPN): Miami vs. Wisconsin
Texas Bowl (9 p.m., ESPN) Baylor vs. Vanderbilt
Friday, Dec. 28
Music City Bowl (1:30 p.m., ESPN): Purdue vs. Auburn
Camping World Bowl (5:15 p.m., ESPN): West Virginia vs. Syracuse
Alamo Bowl (9 p.m., ESPN): Iowa State vs. Washington State
Saturday, Dec. 29
Peach Bowl (12 p.m., ESPN): Florida vs. Michigan
Belk Bowl (12 p.m., ABC): South Carolina vs. Virginia
Arizona Bowl (1:15 p.m., CBSSN): Arkansas State vs. Nevada
Cotton Bowl (4 p.m., ESPN): Notre Dame vs. Clemson
Orange Bowl (8 p.m., ESPN): Oklahoma vs. Alabama
Monday, Dec. 31
Military Bowl (12 p.m., ESPN): Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech
Sun Bowl (2 p.m., CBS): Stanford vs. Pittsburgh
Redbox Bowl (3 p.m., Fox): Michigan State vs. Oregon
Liberty Bowl (3:45 p.m., ESPN): Missouri vs. Oklahoma State
Holiday Bowl (7 p.m., FS1): Northwestern vs. Utah
Gator Bowl (7:30 p.m., ESPN): NC State vs. Texas A&M
Tuesday, Jan. 1
Outback Bowl (12 p.m., ESPN 2): Mississippi State vs. Iowa
Fiesta Bowl (1 p.m., ESPN): LSU vs. UCF
Citrus Bowl (1 p.m., ABC): Kentucky vs. Penn State
Rose Bowl (5 p.m., ESPN): Washington vs. Ohio State
Sugar Bowl (8:45 p.m., ESPN): Texas vs. Georgia
Monday, Jan. 7
College Football Playoff National Championship (8 p.m., ESPN)
Cotton Bowl: Notre Dame vs. Clemson
Oddsmakers aren't convinced this matchup is as close as the rankings suggest. The second-ranked Tigers opened as 10.5-point favorites over the third-ranked Fighting Irish, per OddsShark. The gap has only widened since, with Clemson a 13.5-point favorite as of Wednesday.
It isn't hard to understand the love affair with Dabo Swinney's squad.
Clemson's defense is outrageously good. The unit is tied for second in points allowed per game (13.7) and fourth in average yards surrendered (277). It held eight different teams to 10 points or less, including NC State and Boston College. It put three players on ESPN analyst Todd McShay's Top 32 list of 2019 NFL draft prospects: DE Clelin Ferrell (ninth), DT Dexter Lawrence (13th) and DT Christian Wilkins (17th).
"They're athletic, they're big, they're physical and they're nasty," Notre Dame center Sam Mustipher said of Clemson's front four.
The Tigers also pack a potent offensive punch behind sophomore running back Travis Etienne (1,528 scrimmage yards, 22 touchdowns) and freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence (2,606 passing yards with 24 touchdowns against four interceptions).
But the Fighting Irish earned their spot in this game. They faced four ranked teams this season and not only swept them but controlled those contests by a 143-60 scoring margin.
Junior quarterback Ian Book sparked this offense after taking over under center in Week 4. He gave this run-first group a missing passing element (2,468 yards with 19 touchdowns and six interceptions) while also proving capable of contributing on the ground (250 rushing yards, four scores).
Senior running back Dexter Williams also shone during his first season as the featured back. He not only piled up 941 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground, but he also managed 6.6 yards per attempt on his 142 rushes.
And while Notre Dame's defense isn't quite on Clemson's level, it's still a top-25 unit in yards (22nd) and points (ninth) against.
These are two impressive teams—it's just that Clemson is better. Maybe not by as much as the point spread indicates, but enough to make its third title game appearance in four years.
Prediction: Clemson 30, Notre Dame 20
Orange Bowl: Oklahoma vs. Alabama
This might be as good as you're going to get outside of the championship round.
It's the age-old battle between the unstoppable force and the immovable object. The Sooners, powered by Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray, are objectively absurd on offense. They average the most yards (578) and points (49.5) in the nation. The Crimson Tide, meanwhile, boast a defense with top-10 averages in yards (10th) and points (fourth) against.
Except there's a twist in this version of that cliched matchup—this immovable object has an incredible force of its own.
Before Murray claimed college football's highest individual honor, it seemed like it was Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa's to lose. After all, Tagovailoa had Alabama nipping at Oklahoma's heels with a robust 47.9 points per game. Additionally, his team barely broke a sweat during the regular season, when it beat all 12 of its opponents by at least 22 points.
The SEC Championship Game was a different story, though, with Tagovailoa uncharacteristically struggling before exiting with an ankle injury. He had as many interceptions in that game as he did in the first 12: two.
Having Alabama look mortal had to be a welcome sight for this Oklahoma defense, which has been mostly abysmal all season. The Sooners surrender the second-most passing yards per game in the nation, and they are 96th in scoring defense.
Considering the caliber of offense on deck, Oklahoma's only recipe for an upset is surviving a shootout. It's a high-wire act this team performed all season, surviving by a 51-46 margin against Texas Tech, a 48-47 count versus Oklahoma State and a 59-56 tally over West Virginia.
"I think we have the recipe," Murray said. "I think we know what to do, think we know how to handle it."
Murray's dual-threat ability can give any defense nightmares. The question is whether he will give this stout Alabama group enough problems to keep pace with the scoring frenzy that occurs when he isn't in the game.
It should be incredible to watch, even if it sounds a near-impossible challenge. Oddsmakers peg the Tide as 14-point favorites, and we see it going virtually the same way.
Prediction: Alabama 48, Oklahoma 35
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
