College Football Playoff semifinal schedule, matchups, odds: Ohio State is now the favorite

The semifinals of the 12-team College Football Playoff are set, and no conference champions remain.

All four of the teams still alive in the playoff hosted games in the first round of the playoff. And all four have been favored in their first two games. Favorites are 8-0 straight-up so far this postseason and are 7-1 against the spread. The only underdog to cover the point spread through the first eight games of the playoff is No. 4 Arizona State in its 39-31 double-overtime loss to Texas in the Peach Bowl on Wednesday.

Here’s an early look at the Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl, as the final four teams will play for the chance to be in the national championship game on Jan. 20 in Atlanta.

Orange Bowl: No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 6 Penn State

Date: Jan. 9 | Time: 7:30 p.m. ET | TV: ESPN | Line: Notre Dame -1.5 | Total: 48.5

Notre Dame got its biggest bowl win in 30 years over No. 2 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Thursday. The Irish scored 17 points in less than a minute sandwiching halftime to build a 20-3 lead over the Bulldogs. Penn State kept Boise State’s star rusher Ashton Jeanty in check during the Fiesta Bowl in a 31-14 win on New Year’s Eve.

The line for the game feels right to open and we’re interested to see where action moves it. Notre Dame opened as an underdog to Georgia before becoming a slight favorite in the days before kickoff. Both teams’ defenses have been fantastic, though they’re also dealing with injuries up front. Notre Dame edge Rylie Mills suffered a season-ending leg injury in the first round and Howard Cross III appeared to suffer a left ankle injury late against Georgia. Penn State star defensive end Abdul Carter missed the second half of the Fiesta Bowl with a left shoulder injury. Carter has 11 sacks and 22 tackles for loss this season.

Cotton Bowl: No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 5 Texas

Date: Jan. 10 | Time: 7:30 p.m. ET | TV: ESPN | Line: Ohio State -6.5 | Total: 53.5

Ohio State is favored by a TD in a bowl that might as well be a road game. Texas will be playing in its home state and will have a massive crowd advantage at AT&T Stadium.

The Buckeyes are such significant favorites because of the way they’ve played through the first two rounds of the playoff. Ohio State has outscored its opponents 83-38 so far and was up 31-0 on previously undefeated Oregon midway through the second quarter in the Rose Bowl.

Texas, meanwhile, coughed up a 24-8 lead to Arizona State, got a favorable non-call on a possible targeting penalty late in the fourth quarter and had a game-winning field goal bounce off an upright before finally beating the Sun Devils in double overtime. Texas’ run game was the key to beating Clemson in the first round and the Longhorns did not have anywhere near that same success against ASU. Ohio State’s defensive front was dominant against Oregon and could present real trouble for the Longhorns, who may be the team best-equipped to deal with Ohio State’s passing game.

National champion odds

• Ohio State (+110)

• Texas (+350)

• Notre Dame (+350)

• Penn State (+450)

The Buckeyes are unsurprisingly the big favorites while Texas and Notre Dame are the co-No. 2 favorites. Penn State has the worst odds of the four but can hardly be considered a long shot at the moment. The only possible regular-season rematch in the title game is between Ohio State and Penn State. The Buckeyes beat the Nittany Lions 20-13 on Nov. 2.