"When you think you've got all the answers, I change the questions!"----Roddy Piper.
With the Sugar Bowl postponed to Thursday (more on that shortly), the College Football Playoff quarterfinals have shown just how unpredictable an expanded tournament can be.
After form held in the 1st round, it took just 24 hours for the applecart to be overturned, as three of the top four seeds have been eliminated from the tournament.
It started at the Fiesta Bowl on Tuesday, as Penn State dismissed Mountain West champion Boise State, 31-14. Heisman Trophy finalist Ashton Jeanty was held in check for most of the night, while the Nittany Lions had picked up right where they left off after advancing in the first round.
Then, earlier today, at the Peach Bowl, Texas outlasted Arizona State in double overtime, 39-31. The Sun Devils had erased a 16 point deficit just to tie the game, and force the extra periods. The Big 12 champion was sent home by a former Big 12 team (Texas now represents the SEC).
Finally, in Pasadena, at the Rose Bowl, Ohio State collected a receipt from Oregon. The Buckeyes raced out to a 34-0 lead before the Ducks finally found the end zone on the final play of the 1st half.
Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel had only been sacked 13 times prior to today, but the Buckeye defense got to him at least six times en route to a 41-21 upset.
This means the Big 10, long dismissed as a post-season doormat, has 2 teams left (Ohio St. & Penn St.). Ohio State will play Texas in the Cotton Bowl on January 10, while Penn State awaits the Notre Dame-Georgia winner in the Orange Bowl one week from tonight.
The Irish & the Bulldogs will wait until 4 pm (ET) tomorrow to play after a 42 year old Texas native, radicalized by the Islamic State, rammed his vehicle into an overnight New Year's Eve party in New Orleans, killing 15, and injuring others before he himself was killed by police. There are those who believe he didn't act alone, and that co-conspirators are still at large, with the prospect of striking again between now and next month's Super Bowl.
Once the ratings come in, ESPN & the NCAA will look like geniuses, but there's always next year, and the prospect of a more flawed tournament.
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