The Top 4 College Football Playoff Teams Take The Field This Weekend. Who Survives?

The second part of our conference championship preview involves all of the participants that are currently already in the College Football Playoff if it began today. Playing on Saturday, in order, we have #1 Ohio State (playing #8 Wisconsin), #2 LSU (playing #4 Georgia), #3 Clemson (playing #23 Virginia), and #4 Georgia (playing the aforementioned #1 LSU). The biggest game here is obviously the SEC title game, because the result will have massive implications in the final CFP rankings, specifically who finally gets in. A loss by Georgia would open that fourth spot to #5 Utah, #6 Oklahoma, or #7 Baylor, depending on the results of their respective games (and if any of the top three lose, who knows what chaos would enfold there?); all three teams would have a viable argument if Georgia loses.

Let’s take a closer look at all three of these games.

#4 Georgia (+220) vs. #2 LSU (-305), o/u 54.5 (-114)
Georgia and LSU meet on Saturday in a classic matchup of immovable object versus the irresistible force. 12-0 LSU has vanquished all in its path, including Texas, Florida, Auburn, and Alabama when all were ranked in the top ten. LSU is led by most-likely-to-win-Heisman senior quarterback Joe Burrow, who’s thrown for over 4300 yards with 44 TDs to only six INTs. Just ridiculous numbers. The LSU offense is second in the nation in offensive touchdowns with 75. And it’s not just Burrow, as LSU running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire has been an absolute beast in the biggest games. In three games versus ranked opponents, he’s rushed for 373 yards and six touchdowns on only 19.6 carries per game. He can break off a long run at any moment but still has the physicality to get the tough yards. LSU will need all of their offensive weapons playing at a high level against this Georgia defense. They are as elite as LSU’s offense. They’re the No. 1 run defense in the SEC, and in the nation, they’re No. 5 in yards per play allowed and No. 3 in yards per carry allowed. They’ve only given up 20 points once (in their one loss--an awful one to South Carolina), and has held five opponents to single-digits. Their offense leaves a lot to be desired, so the less said about them, the better. QB Jacob Fromm is purely a game-manager and avoids throwing too many balls downfield to avoid turnovers. They have talented running backs in D’Andre Swift and Brian Herrien, so look to see a lot of those two against an LSU defense that isn’t one of their greatest. LSU will win this game, but Georgia will keep it close into the second half. ​The value play here is Georgia +7.5 (-124).

#23 Virginia Cavaliers (+1200) vs. #3 Clemson Tigers (-10000), o/u 55 (-114)
In what should be the cupcake blowout special of the day, the reigning national champs Clemson Tigers take on the just-happy-to-be-here Virginia Cavaliers. This is the largest point spread differential of the weekend, at ​Clemson -28 (-114), ​and frankly that’s a little low.Clemson has steamrolled the ACC not just this year, but over the last almost two years. They haven’t lost any game, any where, in SEVEN HUNDRED DAYS. Just insane. The only hiccup this year was almost the upset of the decade when they beat UNC 21-20 (the Tar Heels failed to convert a two-point conversion late that would’ve gotten them the win) back in September. That must’ve scared them straight, because since that game, they’ve outscored their opponents by a whopping 353-61 (almost a +200 point-differential!). In those seven games since the UNC game, their defense has given up less than nine points a game. Clemson’s toughest opponent this season has been boredom, because outside of one game, they haven’t had anything even close to a challenge in the terrible ACC. Does playing such a weak schedule leave them vulnerable to a loss here? Absolutely not. Virginia is a more than solid team, and as said earlier, they’re happy to be here. They might even be game early on, but Clemson talent-wise is just several notches above almost everyone, especially Virginia. The Cavs’ only shot here is if their talented dual-threat quarterback Bryce Perkins has a Lamar Jackson moment and absolutely goes off in this game. Perkins leads the ACC and is 13th in the nation in total offense with 3,636 yards. He’s going to have to get 3,000 yards in this game alone for UVA to even have a chance here. ​We like Clemson to cover this huge spread at +28 (-114) and the total points to go over 55 (-114).

#1 Ohio State Buckeyes (-835) vs. #8 Wisconsin Badgers (+480), o/u 56.5 (-114)
Last but not least, we have the Big Ten championship game. 12-0 Ohio State have made their way through a tough conference schedule riding on the back of a high-scoring offense and an elite defense. They aren’t No. 1 for nothing. They lead the country in points per game (49.9) and scoring margin (38.1). The offense is led by the two-headed monster of quarterback Justin Fields (2,654 yards passing, 37 TDs, 1 INT) and running back J.K. Dobbins (1,657 yards rushing, 19 TDs), while the defense is led by defensive end Chase Young, the best defensive player in the country. These two teams met in October in a game that lost some luster before it even began as Wisconsin, obviously looking ahead to the huge OSU game, was upset by lowly Illinois the week before. In that October matchup, Wisconsin actually gave the Buckeyes a game for almost 45 minutes, as the score was 10-7 OSU in the third quarter. The Buckeyes went on to win 38-7. Wisconsin behind their great running back Jonathan Taylor (1,761 yards rushing, 20 TDs), went on to win their last four games after that defeat in Columbus, and with their defense, we give them a puncher’s chance here. Are they going to win? No. ​But we like them to cover the spread +16 (-114).

Everything important will finally be decided on Saturday, and then bowl season will take us through January and into the CFP. Saturday will be the most exciting day of the season, so settle in and enjoy watching, and of course, good luck!

And be sure to visit Sportsbook NJ for more opportunities to win, and the Sportsbook NJ blog for more betting tips and articles. 

*Credit to the main photo of this article belongs to Paul Sancya/Associated Press