A dozen teams enter the College Football Playoff with the same goal: win the national title.

But for some programs and individuals, there’s more at stake here – a narrative-changing opportunity in what you might call the Redemption Playoff.

Put it this way: No matter what happens, Georgia will still be a powerhouse under a respected coach (Kirby Smart). Or, for example, consider that regardless of results, Tennessee and Arizona State will be fast-growing programs with tremendous potential in the coming seasons.

However, for others, fortune and reputation can change dramatically.

Here are the five biggest questions, in descending order.

5. Notre Dame: Is this a new era for the Fighting Irish?

For at least three decades, the Fighting Irish have lived in a world where the good, but not the great, served as the ceiling for the program. They were able to put together strong regular seasons, but whether under Brian Kelly or, to a lesser extent, Charlie Weis, there were limits.

The BCS and four-team playoffs were particularly harrowing – they went 0-3 with a non-competitive overall score of 103-31. Kelly transferred to LSU and essentially admitted he couldn’t win a national title in South Bend.

But what now? Marcus Freeman’s team was unable to compete against Northern Illinois in September. At 11-1, is this a new era for Notre Dame where the transfer portal and NIL allow the program to fill the talent gaps that can finally make them competitive with the sport’s elite?

Or will it be the same old story, just in a new system.

Indiana will visit on Friday, December 20th, offering the program an opportunity to showcase its campus and surrounding area. However, the stuff was never in question. A win — and then a real challenge against No. 2 Georgia in the quarterfinals — is what everyone wants to see. Notre Dame is undoubtedly talented, but national respect has yet to be won.

4. Quinn Ewers: How good is he really?

The Texas quarterback was expected to lead the Longhorns to the playoffs (again) and perhaps win a national title before heading to the NFL as a first-round draft pick. He would then leave the job in Austin to Arch Manning.

The first part is done – Texas is seeded fifth despite not having defeated a single currently ranked team. The NFL part is more complicated.

This year, his completion percentage has decreased (from 69.0 to 66.7) while his interceptions have increased (from 6 to 9). He is represented in the mock drafts from the end of the first to the third selection day. Given the NFL’s ongoing need for QBs, the former is more likely.

However, his two-pick performance in the SEC title game loss to Georgia didn’t help matters. His play is best described as uneven, and there are many Texas fans hoping that Manning gets his chance.

How good is Ewers? Well, the postseason offers a chance to rise up draft boards and become a Longhorn legend. Or it could lead to him returning to college — staying in Austin or entering the transfer portal. No other individual player has as much at stake, even if winning as a team remains the most important thing.

3. James Franklin: Can he win a big game?

The numbers are almost part of the Penn State coach’s name at this point — 3-19 against top-10 opponents and 4-17 against Big Ten heavyweights Ohio State and Michigan. The Nittany Lions win often under Franklin, including 11-2 this year, but not in the big games.

However, every playoff game is a big game, and as the sixth seed, Penn State dreamed of a breakout league run. Eleventh-seeded SMU will host 11th-seeded SMU on Dec. 21, with the winner set to face third-seeded (but ninth-ranked) Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl.

Obviously the Mustangs and Broncos are capable of beating Penn State, but that’s not a killer fight Franklin is facing. If he can get past those two and advance to the semifinals, the program will get a jolt. However, if he falls short, the clamor about how high he can lift the Nittany Lions will only get louder.

The College Football Playoff was created for programs like Penn State that otherwise struggle to beat the best of the best and reach the four-team field. This is Franklin’s opportunity to change many perceptions about his coaching abilities.

2. Dabo Swinney: Can Dabo Dabo win?

At a time when the transfer portal is an integral, if not widespread, way for programs to manage their rosters, only four schools didn’t add a single transfer last offseason: Army, Navy, Air Force and…Clemson.

Swinney won two national titles at Clemson and built his program into a national powerhouse, both of which seemed unlikely before he took over as interim head coach in 2008. He’s always done it his way, and that hasn’t changed, even if the results have slipped – no playoff appearances since 2020.

The Tigers took a winding road to the playoffs — three losses before winning the ACC’s automatic bid on a 56-yard field goal with time expiring. However, they are there, and Swinney has a chance to silence, or at least turn down the volume, the many critics of his old-school system who have labeled him a hard-nosed, behind-the-times coach.

He upset Texas in the first round to start a playoff run, and it remains a proof of concept for how he goes about things – e.g. B. Staying loyal to high school recruits throughout the development process. It’s an idealistic system and it would be nice if it worked.

Here’s Dabo’s chance to prove he can still do it.

1. Ryan Day: Is he the right coach for Ohio State?

No one enters the playoffs with more pressure than the coach of Ohio State University. He leads the Buckeyes 66-10, but he is 0-4 in the last four seasons against Michigan. This puts him under a lot of pressure from an impatient fan base. Now it enters the playoffs in eighth place, but has arguably the most talented roster in the field thanks to reported NIL payouts of $20 million.

The good news? Michigan is not in the playoffs. The bad news? The path to the championship that would likely ease the speculation surrounding it is an arduous one: a visit from Tennessee, with the winner facing No. 1 Oregon in the Rose Bowl.

Day has a history of beating the teams he was supposed to beat, but fell behind the best in the sport – and froze against the Wolverines. The crowd at Ohio Stadium for the Vols game will be big, especially if Ohio State starts slow.

Two years ago, a similar scenario played out, and Ohio State played a great game after a loss at Michigan, nearly defeating eventual national champion Georgia in the semifinals. Can the same level be found again? It may have to be, otherwise Day will face not only calls for his job, but also a level of discomfort that may make it impossible to continue.

For Day, it’s not just a season at stake, it’s a career arc. He may not have to win everything, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt.