Eight teams, four games and one trophy.
The College Football Playoff quarterfinals kick off on Wednesday, Dec. 31, as the Miami Hurricanes take on the defending champion, No. 2 Ohio State, in the Cotton Bowl. Then, the three remaining quarterfinal games are set for Thursday, Jan. 1 with Texas Tech–Oregon, Indiana–Alabama and Georgia–Ole Miss.
Each team has showcased elite play all year, dominating competition while also winning marquee matchups. Below, FOX Sports Research has pointed out one stat to know for each team, along with an offensive and defensive player to watch for. Let’s take a look:
Stat to know: the Hurricanes recorded seven sacks against Texas A&M, which is the second-most by a team in a CFP game all-time; Miami has 41 sacks on the year which is tied for the fourth-most in FBS, and the most of all remaining CFP teams.
Offensive star: Malachi Toney— leads all FBS freshman in receiving yards (992) and receiving TDs (8), and is one of two players in the country with 8+ receiving TDs, 1+ rushing TDs and 2+ passing TDs (Makai Lemon)
Defensive star: Rueben Bain— according to PFF, he’s the only player in FBS to have over 400 pass-rushing snaps with a pass-rush grade over 90; the other five players to exceed 400 pass-rushing snaps didn’t break a grade higher than 78.9, and he also has a run defense grade of 86.7.
Stat to know: holding opponents to 8.2 PPG, on pace to be the second team since 2000 to hold teams to less than 9 PPG; they are the first team in the Division I era (1973) to hold each of their first 13 opponents to 17 points or less.
Offensive star: Jeremiah Smith— is the only player in Ohio State history to record consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his freshman and sophomore seasons; has 28 scrimmage TDs in 28 career games.
Defensive star: Caleb Downs— this season, the safety has played 34 snaps on the defensive line, 214 in the box, 134 at slot corner, nine at wide corner, and 226 at free safety; for his career, he’s totaled 248 tackles, 158 solo tackles, 10 passes defended, and six INTs.
Stat to know: the Ducks lead the nation with 91 plays of 20-plus yards this season, and are one of just three teams to reach the CFP Quarterfinals in each of the last two years (Georgia, Ohio State).
Offensive star: Dante Moore— is one of three Power 4 quarterbacks to have completed over 70% of his passes, been responsible for 30 or more TDs, thrown for over 3,000 yards, and have less than 10 INTs; the other two were Julian Sayin and Diego Pavia, both Heisman finalists.
Defensive star: Matayo Uiagalelei— over his last two seasons at Oregon, the 6’5, 272-pound edge rusher has posted 17.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and 68 total tackles.
Stat to know: lead the country in takeaways with 31 and point differential at +410, and are just the fifth team since 1936 to record 12 wins by at least 20 points in a season.
Offensive star: Behren Morton— the Red Raiders are 11-0 this season and have won 13 straight games when Morton starts; he is one of three FBS QBs to throw for over 2,500 yards and have four or fewer INTs (Trinidad Chambliss, Joe Fagnano).
Defensive star: Jacob Rodriguez— the Bendarik Award winner this year, he became the only player since at least 2005 to record at least five forced fumbles, four INTs and two fumble recoveries all in the same season.
Stat to know: the Tide is holding opponents to 168.4 pass yards per game, which is 10th in FBS and the best mark among all SEC teams; the team’s scoring defense of 17.9 PPG also ranks ninth among all Power 4 teams.
Offensive star: Ty Simpson— he is one of two Power 4 QBs to have 28 pass TDs and five or fewer INTs (Darian Mensah).
Defensive star: LT Overton— he’s missed the Tide’s last two games and is expected to suit up against Indiana; at 6-foot-5, 283 pounds, he’s played four seasons in the SEC (Texas A&M and Alabama)— totaling 123 tackles, 55 solo tackles, seven sacks, and two passes defended.
Stat to know: Indiana is the only undefeated team in FBS, and ranks top five in scoring offense and defense in FBS this season (offense: 41.9 PPG, defense: 10.8 PPG allowed).
Offensive star: Fernando Mendoza— the Heisman winner is second in FBS with 33 pass touchdowns this season, which is also the Indiana single-season record; he’s also the current favorite to be drafted first overall (-220).
Defensive star: D’Angelo Ponds— is one of seven Power 4 cornerbacks to have a PFF pass coverage grade above 85 (min. 350 coverage snaps), holding opposing QBs to a passer rating of 56.7.
Stat to know: Rebels are second among all Power 4 teams in big plays with 137 (big plays: rushes of 10+ yards and receptions of 20+ yards).
Offensive star: Trinidad Chambliss— is seventh in FBS in total offense and third among Power 4 players, with 3,804 yards; he’s totaled 27 TDs on the season with just three INTs.
Defensive star: Suntarine Perkins— has 16.5 sacks for Ole Miss over the past three seasons, which is the second-most of any current SEC player (Colin Simmons).
Stat to know: Bulldogs are the only team in FBS to go 4-0 or better against opponents ranked in the top 15 of the AP poll, and have won nine straight games since a Week 5 loss to Alabama.
Offensive star: Gunner Stockton— one of three Power 4 QBs with 31+ TDs responsible for and five or fewer INTs; against Ole Miss in Week 8, went 26-of-31, had 348 total yards and 5 total TD with no turnovers.
Defensive star: CJ Allen— in three seasons with the Bulldogs, Allen totaled 202 tackles, 115 solo tackles, 10 passes defended, 4.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles; was a First Team All-SEC selection this season.
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