Here is the article:
We’re down to the final 12 teams in college football. The College Football Playoff bracket was revealed on Sunday, and the newly-formatted tournament to determine the next champion in college football is set to begin. First up, the first round. Four games will take place, with berths in the quarterfinals on the line.
No. 12 Clemson is on the road to take on No. 5 Texas, with the Longhorns favored by 10.5 points. Clemson is the ACC champion, while Texas came up just short in the SEC title game against Georgia. The Longhorns lost twice to the Bulldogs this season, once by 15 earlier this year, and a second time by three in overtime of the SEC Championship Game.
No. 10 Indiana will face No. 7 Notre Dame in an in-state battle, with the Fighting Irish favored by 8.5 points. Indiana won’t have to travel far to play the Irish, who have been torching opponents, putting up 47.2 points per game over their last five regular-season games. Meanwhile, Indiana has been putting up major numbers itself, with a win over Purdue in its regular-season finale. However, the Hoosiers do not have a ranked win on the season, playing only one ranked team, losing to Ohio State 38-15.
No. 11 SMU will face No. 6 Penn State, with the Nittany Lions favored by 8 points. SMU lost to Clemson by three in the ACC title game, becoming the final team to make it into the field, edging out three-loss Alabama. Its reward is a trip to Happy Valley to face a Penn State team that lost two games this season to Ohio State and Oregon, by a combined 15 points. SMU does not have a win over a team that ended the regular season ranked in the top 25, while Penn State has one, over No. 20 Illinois.
No. 9 Tennessee will face No. 8 Ohio State, with the Buckeyes favored by 7.5 points. A heavyweight matchup between two contenders from the SEC and Big Ten, Tennessee went 10-2 on the season, playing in the gauntlet that is the SEC, while Ohio State has wins over two other CFP participants in Penn State and Indiana. Both of the Volunteers’ losses this season came on the road, and the Buckeyes lost once at home, in an ugly 13-10 defeat to rival Michigan to close the regular season. How will Ohio State rebound after such a loss?