• Miami upset Texas A&M in a defensive battle, securing a significant win for the ACC in the College Football Playoff.
• Alabama overcame a 17-point deficit to defeat Oklahoma, setting up a Rose Bowl matchup against No. 1 Indiana.
• Oregon and Mississippi easily defeated their Group of Five opponents to advance to the quarterfinals.

No. 9 Alabama finally solved Brent Venables and No. 8 Oklahoma, No. 10 Miami won a defensive slugfest at No. 7 Texas A&M and No. 5 Oregon and No. 6 Mississippi had no trouble against the Group of Five to round out the opening round of the College Football Playoff.

While the Crimson Tide took the all-SEC matchup, then win by the Hurricanes in College Station is a feather in the cap for the ACC after the conference was nearly left out of the tournament entirely. In the end, Miami did what Notre Dame could not and beat the Aggies — and on the road, no less.

The two upsets in the opening round came after all four favorites held serve to open last year’s 12-team playoff debut.

As a gift for beating the Sooners, the Crimson Tide will face off in the Rose Bowl against No. 1 Indiana. Over in the Cotton Bowl, No. 2 Ohio State will take on Miami. The Sugar Bowl will feature another SEC rematch with the Rebels taking on No. 3 Georgia, while No. 4 Texas Tech will face Oregon in the Orange Bowl.

Before heading to the quarterfinals, let’s break down why the ACC and Oklahoma lead the biggest winners and losers from the opening round:

Winners

The ACC

We touched on why this win means so much to the ACC: Duke won the conference with five losses and James Madison cruised to the Sun Belt title after Miami remained behind Notre Dame in the penultimate playoff rankings. There was a strong possibility the conference would not have a single team in the 12-team bracket. Still, the Hurricanes were a late and controversial addition to the field despite topping the Irish during the regular season. While not changing the fact the ACC was the weakest of the Power Four leagues during the regular season, to have Miami become the first team to beat A&M in College Station this year should be a huge confidence booster for the conference.

Miami

Miami ran for 175 yards on 6.3 yards per carry and was the tougher and more physical team in its 10-3 rock fight against A&M. Nearly every inch of the yardage belonged to running back Mark Fletcher Jr., who had 172 yards on 17 carries, including a 56-yard scamper during a fourth-quarter touchdown drive that broke a 3-3 tie. Defensively, the Hurricanes gave up 4.3 yards per play and delivered three key takeaways, including an interception in the end zone with 24 seconds left to seal the win. There’s still plenty to work on: Miami’s passing game sputtered, though Carson Beck did avoid any giveaways, and the kicking game made just one of four field goals. That won’t cut it against the Buckeyes.

Kalen DeBoer

It’s extremely easy to think about how the Alabama fan base would’ve turned on DeBoer had the Tide not tied for the largest comeback in playoff history by digging out of a 17-0 deficit in the second quarter. Another loss to Oklahoma might’ve even been enough to convince DeBoer to at least take a look at the Michigan opening, given the chance for a reboot in the Big Ten. But after missing the playoff entirely last year, DeBoer and Alabama nailed down a much-needed postseason win and can begin evaluating the nation’s only unbeaten team in the Hoosiers.

Oregon and Mississippi

Neither team broke a sweat, unless you count the roughly quarter-long span against Tulane where the Rebels treaded water after jumping out to an early lead. The Rebels’ owned the second half of a 41-10 win against the Green Wave while Oregon was all over James Madison from the start of a 51-34 romp. As expected, the feel-good underdog stories the Green Wave and Dukes brought to the table didn’t quite translate when lined up across from two of the most talented teams in the Power Four. For the first time in the 12-team era, we’ll see how playing a Group of Five team in the opening round prepares the winner for a top-four opponent in the quarterfinals.

Pete Golding

So far, so good for the new Rebels coach. Making his debut in the opening round against Tulane, Golding pushed the right buttons out of the gate to help Ole Miss spring out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. While things stagnated through the first half, with Ole Miss ahead 17-3, halftime adjustments sparked a 27-0 run coming out of the break to put the Green Wave away. A bigger test awaits in New Orleans.

Losers

The road to the national championship began Friday night in Norman with the Alabama Crimson Tide facing a significant early test against the Oklahoma Sooners.

Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer saw his team fall into a massive hole early in the first half of this College Football Playoff first-round matchup. The atmosphere was electric and hostile as the home team jumped out to a quick lead that threatened to end the season for the visitors right out of the gate.

Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson and the rest of the offense struggled to find rhythm during the opening quarter while the defense had trouble containing Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer. The scoreboard read 17-0 in favor of the Sooners midway through the second quarter and left the crowd in a frenzy. It appeared the momentum had fully swung toward the home sideline before a sudden shift changed the trajectory of the game entirely.

A furious rally sparked by the defense and special teams helped the Crimson Tide score 27 unanswered points to stun the crowd. Simpson found Alabama freshman receiver Lotzeir Brooks for crucial scores while Alabama defensive back Zabien Brown provided a spark with a defensive touchdown. The 34-24 victory secured a spot in the quarterfinals and drew high praise the following morning from a legendary figure in the program’s history.

Former coach praises resilience shown by Alabama in playoff win

The turnaround began when the Crimson Tide defense tightened up and forced mistakes from an Oklahoma offense that had been dominating early. Brown stepped in front of a pass from Mateer and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown to tie the game before halftime.

The Alabama defense held strong in the second half while the offense found its footing. Brooks finished the night with five catches for 79 yards and two touchdowns after not finding the end zone during the regular season.

Special teams played a massive role in the comeback as well. Alabama defensive lineman Tim Keenan III blocked a punt that set up a field goal to cut into the deficit. Meanwhile Oklahoma kicker Tate Sandell struggled down the stretch.

Sandell had connected on a 51-yard field goal earlier in the game but missed two crucial kicks in the fourth quarter that would have kept the Sooners alive. The collapse allowed Alabama to bleed the clock and secure the victory.

On Saturday morning on ESPN’s College GameDay, former Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban shared his thoughts on the gritty performance. Saban highlighted the mental toughness required to win in such a loud environment.

“Well, you know, I said they’re going to have the heart of a lion to be able to sustain in that atmosphere, but they drove through the smoke and ‘Baby, I feel good. I knew that I would,’” Saban said while (poorly) singing the famous hook to James Brown’s hit I Feel Good.

Saban admitted it was difficult to predict a Crimson Tide victory given the circumstances in the stadium.

“It was a great win for Alabama. And I’m so proud of that team because that atmosphere was something, man,” Saban said. “And it was hard to sit there and pick Alabama last night sitting in that stadium knowing the energy in that stadium. But sometimes, I think the emotion of the game can work against you. You know Oklahoma was really way up here but as the game went on you could see that that emotion didn’t sustain.”

The Alabama Crimson Tide will face the Indiana Hoosiers in the Rose Bowl on Wednesday, Jan. 1.

Read more on College Football HQ

NORMAN, Okla. — Momentum can be a powerful force. It sure was early on Friday night: Oklahoma started as hot as it finished the regular season. Alabama looked very much like the team that wheezed down the stretch, set to be run quickly out of a College Football Playoff many thought it didn’t belong in anyway.

Then momentum swung, right on the field. A clutch fourth-down touchdown. A dropped punt attempt. A pick six.

A stunning reversal, and then momentum basically kept going as Alabama rallied past Oklahoma, 34-24, in the first round of the CFP. Alabama advanced to face No. 1 Indiana in the Rose Bowl/CFP quarterfinals on Jan. 1.

Alabama won after trailing 17-0, early in the second quarter. It was the largest comeback in a CFP game since 2018 — also against Oklahoma, which lost a 17-point lead to Georgia in the Rose Bowl.

“The game came back to us,” Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said. “All of a sudden we found opportunities we could attack, and more plays were made. This is something hopefully we can build off of for the next two weeks.”

Oklahoma’s defense, one of the best in the country, dominated early on, with Alabama not even getting a first down on its first three drives. The Crimson Tide finally got going on the fourth drive, but even then needed a fourth-down conversion: Ty Simpson’s pass to Lotzeir Brooks on fourth-and-3, with Brooks finishing it off for a short touchdown play.

Then things unraveled for the Sooners: The punter dropped the ball as he prepared to punt, leading to an Alabama field goal. Then quarterback John Mateer made an ill-advised throw in the two-minute drill that was picked off by Zabien Brown and returned for a score-tying touchdown.

When the second half started, Alabama kept it going. Simpson finished the game with 232 passing yards and two touchdowns, making up for an Alabama running game that continues to be almost nonexistent. And the Crimson Tide defense sacked Mateer four times, while clamping down on the Sooners’ run game.

That was enough for Alabama (11-3) to avenge a regular-season loss to Oklahoma (10-3), part of a second half that put the Crimson Tide’s postseason hopes in jeopardy. But the CFP selection committee put the Tide in the Playoff anyway, and for one night that decision was validated.

Asked about the criticism of this team coming off the 28-7 SEC title game loss to Georgia, Simpson flipped it around.

“I guess we can thank you guys,” Simpson said to reporters. “Y’all kind of wrote us off. Appreciate that.”

Alabama’s got roses and “Going back to Cali” blares from the locker room. pic.twitter.com/jMo9sEBG5c

— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) December 20, 2025

OU’s turnovers and special teams mistakes make difference

In its previous two wins over Alabama, Oklahoma had a 6-1 turnover edge (including two pick sixes) and dominated special teams. On Friday night, that finally flipped back in Alabama’s direction.

It was the Crimson Tide who got a pick six, tying the score late in the first half. And it was Oklahoma’s No. 1-ranked special teams that faltered. There was a dropped punt snap by punter Grayson Miller, which led to a blocked kick and an eventual Alabama field goal. And in the second half, the Sooners committed a bad late hit penalty on a punt, giving the Tide 15 free yards, which they turned into a touchdown. A poor punt in the fourth quarter helped set up another Alabama touchdown, with the Tide starting the drive at the OU 35.

Oklahoma kicker Tate Sandell, who won the Lou Groza Award as the nation’s top kicker, missed two field goals in the fourth quarter as the Sooners tried to cut it to a one score game. Meanwhile, Alabama kicker Conor Talty, who struggled this year with 13 field goals on 20 attempts (including a blocked miss in the first Oklahoma game), went two-for-two this time around.

Oklahoma: Work to do as a program

This season was a step forward for the Oklahoma program under Brent Venables. But this showed there’s still maturing to do.

When Alabama made its run, Oklahoma wilted. The Sooners lost composure in all three phases: Mateer’s pick six, defensive struggles, special teams penalties and mistakes. And when the Sooners did get off the mat, it was only brief: They didn’t have it in them to keep momentum going.

This wasn’t a case of a team lucky to be ahead in the first place: Oklahoma was dominating, outgaining Alabama 236-100 in the first half, with 75 of those yards coming on one drive. But that drive turned the game, and things snowballed. Even during his halftime interview, Venables seemed more shell-shocked than confident, and his team’s play reflected that.

Oklahoma was used to big postseason games under Bob Stoops and Lincoln Riley, but this was the first CFP trip under Venables, who took over in 2022, and the first since 2019. While it’s a huge disappointment to go out this way, especially at home and especially after the way the game started, it can also be chalked up to inexperience on the big stage, and a needed moment of growth.

Narrative busters

The first round of this year’s CFP is already better than last year’s.

The first year of the expanded CFP saw four blowouts in the first round, all by the home team. And for a quarter it looked like it was about to happen again.

But Alabama’s comeback, then Oklahoma’s touchdown to make it 27-24, meant a close game well into the fourth quarter. It also showed that as valuable as home-field advantage is, the visitors have a chance.

Last year’s games had an average margin of victory of 19.25 points. The 8 vs. 9 game saw Ohio State rout Tennessee, 42-17.

Of course Friday night’s game doesn’t guarantee that any of Saturday’s games will be close. Alabama and Oklahoma was supposed to be a close game per the betting lines, and it was, but on Saturday, Oregon is a 20-point favorite over James Madison and Ole Miss is a 17.5-point favorite over Tulane.

Texas A&M, however, is only a 3.5-point favorite over Miami. And even if that doesn’t end up being competitive, at least the second year of the new format has provided a game that had some drama — and a road winner.

Rose Bowl early look

While the programs’ histories are polar opposites, they meet in this contest from directions that belie their tradition. Unbeaten Indiana (13-0) is led by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza and boasts the nation’s most complete profile. It ranks No. 5 in scoring offense (41.9) and No. 2 in scoring defense (10.8). It sits in the top 15 in rushing and passing offense and defense.

Alabama (11-3) ranks 121st nationally in rushing yards per game (109.9) and has given up 29 sacks. Indiana’s defense sits third in rushing yards allowed (77.6) and has 39 sacks to rank fourth nationally.

There are a ton of connections among the coaching staffs. Curt Cignetti was Alabama’s wide receivers coach under Nick Saban and won a national title in 2009. DeBoer was Indiana’s offensive coordinator in 2019, and three other Alabama assistants coached in Bloomington within the past five years.

50 Cent sparks OU briefly

Oklahoma this season adopted 50 Cent’s “Many Men” as its fourth-quarter song. Then heading into Friday’s fourth quarter, the Sooners brought him out for a surprise appearance. The quality wasn’t great, both because of the microphone and 50 Cent’s effort — and the crowd was out of it, thanks to 27 consecutive Alabama points.

But two plays later, Oklahoma was in the end zone thanks to a pass interference penalty and a 37-yard Mateer touchdown pass. But the musician’s boost wasn’t enough to help OU to its own rally.