College Football Playoff

The semifinals of the College Football Playoff begin tonight, with No. 7 Notre Dame taking on No. 6 Penn State in the Orange Bowl (7:30 pm ET, ESPN). The winner will face either No. 5 Texas or No. 8 Ohio State, who meet tomorrow night (7:30 pm ET, ESPN) in the Cotton Bowl. All four programs are in the top seven in terms of all-time wins (see list). 

Notre Dame, led by third-year coach Marcus Freeman, rides a 12-game winning streak into the matchup after a second-week upset against Northern Illinois. Penn State, entering as a slight 1.5-point underdog, features 1,000-yard rusher Kaytron Allen and Mackey Award-winning tight end Tyler Warren. Each program is chasing its first title since the 1980s (Notre Dame, 1988; Penn State, 1986). 

Ohio State enters tomorrow's game, having beaten No. 9 Tennessee and No. 1 Oregon by an average of 23 points each. Texas, led by QB Quinn Ewers, beat No. 4 Arizona State in double overtime to advance. 

The championship game will be held Monday, Jan. 20, in Atlanta.