Cotton Bowl trench battle, Rose Bowl QB showdown among storylines in College Football Playoff quarterfinals

Storylines to watch during the College Football Playoff quarterfinal bowl games as we inch closer toward crowning a national champ

On paper, these quarterfinal matchups look terrific and better than what we got a year ago. There are storylines galore and a good mix of traditional blue bloods and programs that have smartly capitalized on college football's new era to ascend up the sport. 

Ahead of a fantastic slate that starts New Year's Eve with Ohio State vs. Miami in the Cotton Bowl, here's what you need to know ahead of the four College Football Playoff quarterfinal games. 

Battle of the trenches in Dallas

Miami didn't exactly wow anyone with its ugly 10-3 first-round win over Texas A&M. Carson Beck managed only 103 yards passing, and the Hurricanes' lone touchdown came with 1:44 left in the game. 

Surely, Ohio State will blow out this Miami team that was the final one to get into the playoff bracket, right?

Well, the Buckeyes are indeed the biggest favorite of any of the four quarterfinal games (9.5 points). And, yes, outside of a hard-fought loss to No. 1 Indiana, Ohio State sailed through this season with ease behind a historically efficient quarterback in Julian Sayin and elite talent up and down the roster in Jeremiah Smith, Carnell Tate, Caleb Downs and many others. 

If, though, you were trying to make an argument to how Miami could win this game, it starts in the trenches. Miami has one of the best offensive lines in the country and the kind of elite defensive talent that can give opposing quarterbacks major headaches. Just ask Texas A&M's Marcel Reed, who was sacked seven times in the loss to Miami. A&M's running game didn't fare much better, totaling 89 yards and an anemic 2.5 yards per carry average. 

Ohio State has a better offensive line than Texas A&M but has shown it can be susceptible to defensive pressure. The Buckeyes gave up five sacks against Indiana and didn't do a good job of giving Sayin enough time in critical spots to get the ball out to where it needed to go. Against a star like Miami's Rueben Bain Jr., that can be a recipe for disaster. 

Conversely, Miami will need its talented offensive line to give Beck as much time as possible to have any hope of succeeding against Matt Patricia's brilliant OSU defense. Indiana had enough success in the Big Ten title game, but it still wasn't easy. This will be the toughest defense Beck has faced all year. 

New Money vs. Newish Money

Outside of Ohio State, there's a strong argument that Oregon and Texas Tech have best embraced what's possible in the NIL + revenue share era. Both have billionaire benefactors, both reside in locations that weren't traditional hotspots and both have been aggressive about putting together the best rosters that money can buy. 

Texas Tech has openly embraced that, unafraid to discuss how much it has spent on this year's roster. Oil billionaire Cody Campbell's grand plan for Texas Tech has paid off big time with the Red Raiders winning the Big 12, earning a first-round bye and now getting an Orange Bowl quarterfinal. For a program that averaged 7.66 wins over the last three seasons, this was only possible with an aggressive portal spending plan that saw the Red Raiders load up on players like David Bailey and Lee Hunter. 

Oregon, especially coach Dan Lanning, has been a bit more defensive about the impact of NIL, offering barbs to opponents who have brought up Oregon's hefty payroll. But there's no question that Oregon, powered by Nike co-founder Phil Knight, has been creative and smart about a well-financed and well put together roster. A year ago, Oregon was the No. 1 overall seed but had a brutal path and lost to eventual champion Ohio State. This year, Oregon easily dispatched James Madison in Round 1 but faces a much tougher challenge in the quarterfinal.

The matchup that should be very exciting to watch is Oregon's offense versus Texas Tech's defense. At Oregon, you have expensive transfers leading the way in quarterback Dante Moore, left guard Emmanuel Pregnon and leading rusher Noah Whittington and leading receiver Malik Benson. On the flip side, you'll see a defense full of new faces this season that have more than delivered on their hefty investment. Texas Tech went out and rebuilt its defensive front with Bailey, Hunter and Romello Height, and it paid off with one of the nation's top defenses. 

There are a lot of factors to watch with this one, but for two of the biggest spending teams, the Cotton Bowl result is another indicator of whether it was all worth it. 

Boring by design and built to last: The beauty of Curt Cignetti's success at Indiana lies in its simplicity

Richard Johnson

QB battle will decide Rose Bowl

The last time Alabama played in the Rose Bowl, it marked the end of Nick Saban's sport-defining 17 seasons in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide lost in heartbreaking fashion to Michigan, which set up a title game bout against … Kalen DeBoer's Washington Huskies. 

In just the two years since, we now have DeBoer leading the way at Alabama versus a Curt Cignetti-coached Indiana Hoosiers program that is the story of this decade. It's remarkable just how much has changed in that short period of time. There are storylines galore here with DeBoer and defensive coordinator Kane Wommack, both former Indiana assistants. Cignetti was a former Alabama assistant under Saban and won a national championship in 2009. Star Indiana defensive coordinator Bryant Haines was named after legendary former Alabama coach Bear Bryant.

In this game, it'll likely come down to which quarterback fares better. Indiana, of course, has the Heisman Trophy winner in Fernando Mendoza. The Hoosiers have a better running game than Alabama, too, and will have Omar Cooper Jr. back after missing the Big Ten Championship Game against Ohio State. Mendoza has exceeded even the loftiest expectations when he transferred in from Cal. He has elevated both the Indiana program and his own draft stock and could be the first QB drafted in next year's NFL Draft. 

Here's something that caught my eye, though. In Indiana's three toughest games of the season so far (at Oregon, at Iowa, Ohio State), Mendoza went 48 of 77 for 670 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions. Respectable numbers, but they don't blow you away. 

Now consider Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson's stats against the Tide's three toughest opponents (Georgia twice, Oklahoma twice and Vanderbilt): 112 of 179 for 1,386 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions. The completion percentages between the two are almost identical. 

Simpson has been a rollercoaster in Alabama's recent games. The Tide got blown out against Georgia and then found themselves down 17-0 against Oklahoma in the first round before they came roaring back. Simpson connected with Lotzeir Brooks for the freshman wide receiver's first two career touchdowns, and Alabama escaped Norman with a thrilling comeback win. 

Can Simpson deliver heroics once more? Indiana is too disciplined and too consistent to blow a 17-0 lead the way Oklahoma did. Alabama will need to be aggressive and creative from the jump, knowing that Indiana is going to prioritize taking away its passing game. The Hoosiers rate top five nationally in total defense, scoring defense and rushing defense. I saw in person how Indiana limited Ohio State's potent offense in the Big Ten Championship Game, and it'll be tough sledding for Alabama offensively in the Rose Bowl against Haines' brilliant defense. 

Indiana is rightfully a 7-point favorite in this one, but if Bama wins, we'll be talking about how Simpson fared better than the Heisman winner. 

Trinidad Chambliss' future at Ole Miss is up in the air, but uncertainty has been a common theme along journey

Richard Johnson

Can Ole Miss keep the magic alive?

The dynamic is admittedly a bit weird. Amidst its best season in modern history, Ole Miss is led by a man who started the season as the defensive coordinator, almost its entire offensive staff is also working for a top rival, and its former head coach, Lane Kiffin, may attend the Sugar Bowl alongside the governor of Louisiana. After raiding Ole Miss' offensive staff, Kiffin is expected to also pursue a few Ole Miss players once the transfer portal opens up on Jan. 2. 

And yet, in spite of all that awkwardness, the Sugar Bowl presents a golden opportunity for new coach Pete Golding and these talented Rebels to prove they are capable of shutting out the noise and overcoming adversity. Ole Miss more than answered the test in a first round home game against Tulane. The offense looked as explosive as ever under offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., and Golding deftly managed being a head coach and still calling the defensive plays. 

But this will be different against a Georgia team that delivered Ole Miss' lone loss of the 2025 season. Back in October, the two exchanged haymakers back-and-forth in a rollicking game inside Sanford Stadium that the Bulldogs eventually won 43-35. In that game, Georgia didn't have to punt the ball a single time, a source of frustration for Golding and his defensive staff. 

Can Ole Miss get redemption this time around? It'll be very challenging against a Georgia team that is peaking at the right time. The Bulldogs have won their last nine games, including convincing wins over Texas and Alabama in that stretch. You know Kirby Smart's defense will be ferocious and aggressive in trying to slow down Trinidad Chambliss and Kewan Lacy. 

But maybe, just maybe, this Ole Miss team is different. A win over Georgia would send a message to everyone, including possibly the former head coach in attendance, that the Rebels are legitimate and won't be going away under Golding's leadership.