This is the first year of the 12 team College Football Playoff. With it, comes the introduction of home-games for higher seeds in the first round. Given this is the first time teams will be travelling between campuses for the playoff, we wanted to see what that travel actually ends up looking like and how much of an advantage it provides. Below are the first round College Football Playoff games ranked by how far each team needs to travel.
4. Indiana @ Notre Dame: 199 Miles
The Battle for Indiana is obviously the shortest. This isn’t exactly a backyard brawl, but certainly the most drivable by a pretty large margin. These teams also have a history, which is unsurprising given their proximity: Indiana and Notre Dame have played 29 times, with Notre Dame being the clear leader with a 23-5-1 record. Vegas predicts a similar outcome here, with Notre Dame being 7 point favorites. Ironically, Lucas Oil Stadium lies right between the two, a stadium neither team has gotten to play a football conference championship game in.
3. Tennessee @ Ohio State: 362 Miles
This game gets our superlative for “Surprisingly Close Distance”. 5 hours and 40 minutes is long, but certainly drivable. Perhaps a neutral site game at Kroger Field or Nippert Stadium would be more fitting, given those two stadiums lie firmly in the middle. Those on CFB Twitter know that Tennessee has been threatening to invade and pack Ohio Stadium, so we very well may see the impact of this close-ish distance play out with the game’s environment. Regardless, the bad blood between these teams seems to already be exceeding the proximity – which is especially impressive given they’ve only played once, with a Tennessee win. Despite Tennessee winning that game, Ohio State is a 7 point favorite here.
2. Clemson @ Texas: 1,081 Miles
Dabo Swinney has expressed that he’s excited to see Matthew McConaughey – he’s going to travel quite far to do so. Over 1000 miles separates these two teams in a Battle of the Orange. In a wide route along the Gulf of Mexico, the Tigers will see much of the American Southland (including Montgomery, Mobile, Baton Rouge and Houston) as they try to shake up Austin Texas. Early odds indicate that distance travelled is for naught, as Texas is the largest favorites of this round by 12. Regardless, two historic College Football heavyweights in a playoff matchup should be worth the travel, especially since these teams have never played before!
1. SMU @ Penn State: 1,363 Miles
Just looking at the playoff bracket, it’s unsurprising this is the longest haul. In fact, the more surprising thing is that any other matchup comes close. The Pony Express will be travelling far, specifically 1,363 miles, to get to Happy Valley for the playoff game. Once they get there, they’re rewarded with a sturdy Penn State team that is 8.5 point favorites. These teams have only played twice, in 1978 and 1948, with one Penn State win and one tie. Can SMU finally even the record here after a long near-50 years? They can think long and hard about that as they drive through Little Rock, Memphis, Nashville, Louisville, Cincinnati, Columbus and Pittsburgh. Or more realistically, the Mustangs will take a plane.
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