SMU got shellacked by Penn State, 38-10. Tennessee was outclassed against Ohio State, 42-17. In fact, first round games in the last CFP were decided by an average of 19.3 points. The nominal closest was a 10-point win by Notre Dame against Indiana. The Fighting Irish were up 24-3 at one point as the Hoosiers pulled close in garbage time.

There was no shortage of drama this college football season, but how will it close out and who will hoist the championship trophy? Our experts give their picks.

Bowl season is officially underway, and this week brings a mix of early bowl matchups and high-stakes College Football Playoff games. From December 16 through December 20, there are plenty of games that will set the tone for the rest of the postseason.

The College Football Playoff begins Dec. 19, 2025 and ends Jan. 19. Who will win the national title? Ohio State? Georgia? Someone else?

Two more previously made the playoff in Indiana’s Curt Cignetti and Oregon’s Dan Lanning. Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire has delivered the best regular season in program history and Texas A&M coach Mike Elko led the Aggies to their most success in the regular season in decades.

There was no shortage of drama surrounding this year's College Football Playoff (CFP) selection. The CFP committee didn't make many controversial choices, but a couple of decisions have been hotly debated since the bracket was announced just over a week ago.

There are six bowl games beyond CFP purview that are going down between Tuesday and Friday. Here's how to watch each of them.

The new era of college football features a larger College Football Playoff and a lower bar (and more forgiveness) for inclusion. Meanwhile, the transfer portal and increased freedom of movement for players have meant that today's best teams can't quite stockpile awesome backups as easily as they could in the past.

ECU is capable of matching what Pitt can do offensively, which makes the matchup stand out on a busy bowl schedule on December 27. ECU quarterback Katin Houser threw for over 3,000 yards and ran for nine touchdowns. Look for him to be one of the surprise standouts of bowl season.