The TV ratings proved views were interested. Each of the four games averaged 10.6 million viewers. That’s more than the four the non-CFP New Year’s bowls after the 2023 season averaged (8.14 million), and also topped the average for this year’s four major conference championship games (10 million).

The Peach Bowl is unfamiliar territory for both teams. Only Arizona State has ever played in the Atlanta-based bowl; that was back in 1970 when Frank Kush’s Sun Devils out of the WAC completed an unbeaten season 11-0 with a 48-26 victory against North Carolina at Georgia Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium.

Eight teams remain in the College Football Playoff, and none are perfect. As far as fans are concerned, that's a good thing. It leads to more uncertainty about how the final three rounds will play out,