Seven Players Who Will Decide the College Football Playoff Quarterfinals

As the College Football Playoff whittles down to eight teams, the level of competition should intensify after four lackluster first-round contests. The quarterfinals feature intriguing matchups and an opportunity for various players to factor into pivotal roles. 

Some of the playmakers poised to be the difference in their quarterfinals are obvious; others, less so. All figure into a central subplot of their respective matchups.

Fiesta Bowl: Boise State vs. Penn State

QB Maddux Madsen, Boise State

While running back Ashton Jeanty’s historic rushing production is the obvious cornerstone of Boise State’s push to the Playoff, the steadiness Maddux Madsen has provided at quarterback played a crucial role in the Broncos’ 11-game winning streak.

Defenses focusing more on slowing Jeanty each week forced Madsen to keep the opposition honest. He responded with 22 touchdown passes against only three interceptions and five rushing scores.

Penn State’s defense is the deepest and most talented Boise State will see since visiting No. 1 overall seed Oregon back in Week 2. The Nittany Lions’ stifling run defense, which has held opponents to just 3.1 yards per carry, figures to focus heavily on Jeanty.

Madsen’s response early on, perhaps forcing Penn State defenders out of the box, will determine Boise State’s fortunes in the quarterfinals.

DT Zane Durant, Penn State

Penn State’s defensive line causes opposing offenses headaches on all sides, most notably with Abdul Carter’s uncanny ability to get into the backfield. A vital part of freeing up the rush comes on the interior, where Zane Durant causes plenty of problems for blockers.

The tackle’s combination of size, speed off the line, and strength produces mismatches that contribute to the Nittany Lions’ stingy rushing yields. Durant’s contributions are hardly limited to commanding blocking attention, though, as he has added a healthy 10 tackles for loss to Penn State’s whopping 102 total as a team.

With Durant in the middle, Boise State could find it tough to establish Jeanty on the ground, forcing the Broncos’ offense to work outside of the hashes.

Peach Bowl: Arizona State vs. Texas

RB Cam Skattebo, Arizona State

At just 75 yards from surpassing Eno Benjamin as Arizona State’s single-season rushing record-holder, Sun Devils running back Cam Skattebo has history ahead of him in the Peach Bowl. More importantly for the team’s goals, Skattebo carries the weight of an offense chasing an improbable national championship, bolstered by its other star offensive player.

The loss of wide receiver Jordan Tyson in the regular-season finale dealt the Sun Devils a significant blow, with Tyson’s 1,101 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns accounting for a significant bulk of Arizona State’s aerial offense.

Not having Tyson in the lineup didn’t slow the Sun Devils in the Big 12 Championship Game romp against Iowa State, thanks in no small part to Skattebo’s 170 rushing yards on just 16 carries and two receptions for 38 yards. Skattebo is Arizona State’s leading receiver in yardage for the season with Tyson sidelined, so his dual role in the run and pass game only magnifies his importance to the offense.

LB Colin Simmons, Texas

Freshman Colin Simmons has been impressive since his Longhorns debut and has only gotten better as the 2024 campaign has gone along. The lightning-quick, hard-hitting linebacker heads into the Playoff with four sacks in three of Texas’ final four games, including one in the SEC Championship matchup with Georgia.

Simmons also forced his third fumble of the season against the Bulldogs.

Having played some of his best games in the Longhorns’ biggest spots, stepping up in key, late-season wins over Arkansas and Texas A&M, expect Simmons to again step up in the team’s biggest spot yet. 

The Longhorns defense must set the tone early against a prolific Arizona State offense and stamp out any hope for the Sun Devils to turn the Peach Bowl into a track meet.

Rose Bowl Game: Ohio State vs. Oregon

LB Cody Simon, Ohio State

In a meeting of two of college football’s highest-scoring teams, with Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly’s role being front and center, the Granddaddy of ‘Em All promises to come down to defensive playmakers.

The engine driving the nation’s best scoring defense, Cody Simon leads Ohio State into what could be the best of the four quarterfinals. Labeling the Rose Bowl Game with such a designation isn’t conjecture, either, given these same two teams played to a one-score difference when they met in October.

In that game, which Oregon won at home 32-31, Ducks running back Jordan James’ performance was critical.

Simon, key to the Buckeyes’ rush defense, should prove instrumental to Ohio State’s containment of James, and the linebacker also sets the tone for putting pressure on Ducks quarterback Dillon Gabriel.

EDGE Matayo Uiagalelei, Oregon

With a team-high 10.5 sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss, it’s hardly a stretch to suggest Oregon would not be in the position it is without Matayo Uiagalelei’s presence on the Ducks defense.

One play in particular, however, looms large with Oregon heading into the Rose Bowl Game as the Playoff’s No. 1 overall seed: His heads-up interception of a pass deflected at the line sealed the Ducks’ gritty 16-13 win at Wisconsin on Nov. 16.

That game was part of an outstanding seven-game stretch for Uiagalelei in which he recorded seven of his sacks, one of which came in the win over Ohio State. That his quietest individual effort coincided with Oregon allowing a season-high 37 points in its eight-point win over Penn State in the Big Ten Championship Game is probably no coincidence.

Sugar Bowl: Georgia vs. Notre Dame

QB Gunner Stockton, Georgia

The elbow injury Carson Beck sustained in the SEC Championship Game shrouded Georgia’s quarterback situation in uncertainty ahead of the Playoff. As of this week, it’s uncertain no more: Beck underwent surgery that will prevent him from playing the rest of the season.

Whether that remainder of the campaign is three games or fewer depends on how reserve quarterback Gunner Stockton performs in the start against an outstanding Notre Dame defense.

Stockton went 12-of-16 passing against Texas but managed just 71 yards and was intercepted.

The turnover is significant against a Fighting Irish secondary that has been especially adept all season at generating takeaways.

Stockton does not need to be spectacular for Georgia to advance beyond the Sugar Bowl, but the Bulldogs will need him to be better than he was in the SEC Championship Game.

DL Howard Cross III, Notre Dame

With a multitude of injuries plaguing Notre Dame’s defensive line, the return of Howard Cross III ahead of the Fighting Irish’s first-round win over Indiana could not have come at a more opportune time. Notre Dame heads to New Orleans with Rylie Mills, Jason Onye, and Boubacar Traore all sidelined due to injury, leaving Cross to anchor a youthful front against a physical Georgia line.

Cross made 5.5 tackles for loss with four sacks before missing the final three games of the regular season.

Cross eased back in against Indiana, but the Irish will need the veteran to pick up the pressure in the Sugar Bowl to rattle a largely untested Bulldogs quarterback.