College Football

Michigan-Alabama, Texas-Washington: College Football Playoff by the numbers

Published Dec. 28, 2023 12:31 p.m. ET

FOX Sports' lead college football analyst Joel Klatt described this year's College Football Playoff field as being "as good as a playoff field as we've ever had in the sport."

The anticipation for this year's CFP semifinals is off the charts as the top-four teams in the country get ready to face off to find out who will compete in the national championship game on Jan. 8 in Houston.

First up on the playoff front, Nick Saban and No. 4 Alabama will head to Pasadena, California to face Jim Harbaugh and No. 1 Michigan in the Rose Bowl at 5 p.m. ET Monday.

These two programs have combined for 25 national championships and seven Heisman Trophy winners. This game will mark the first time the Crimson Tide and Wolverines have met since 2020.

Following that showdown, Quinn Ewers and No. 3 Texas meet Michael Penix Jr. and No. 2 Washington in the Sugar Bowl at 8:45 p.m. ET.

Both of these programs are in their final season with their current conferences, with Texas leaving the Big 12 to join the SEC, and Washington leaving the Pac-12 to join the Big Ten.

This marks the Longhorns' first CFP appearance, and the second for the Huskies (2016).

Alabama-Michigan, Texas-Washington previews with Emmanuel Acho and Chris Petersen

Here are the numbers to know ahead of the matchups:

MONDAY

Rose Bowl: No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Alabama
5 p.m. ET

Rose Bowl Preview: Breaking down Michigan and Alabama's strengths on offense and defense

1,967: Combined number of wins for the Crimson Tide and Wolverines, the two winningest programs in college football history.

2020: The last time these two teams met was in the Citrus Bowl, where Alabama defeated Michigan, 35-16.

9.5: PPG allowed by the Wolverines, who have the No. 1 scoring defense in the country this season.

1997: The last season Michigan won a national championship.

2nd: The Wolverines have had back-to-back seasons finishing with the best regular-season PPG differential in the FBS. The team with the best regular-season PPG differential has won the national title in two of the last three seasons.

74.2: Completion percentage for Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy, who is averaging 9.2 yards per attempt and 213.5 total YPG, along with 22 touchdowns and four interceptions this season.

24: Rushing TDs for Michigan RB Blake Corum, who leads the FBS this season.

11: Consecutive games the Crimson Tide have won since their Week 2 home loss to Texas.

17: Number of touchdowns Alabama QB Jalen Milroe has accounted for over his last five games. He has the second-most TDs in the SEC this season with 35.

777: Receiving yards this season for Alabama wideout Jermaine Burton, who leads the team in that category, as well as receiving touchdowns (eight).

292-70-1: Head coach Nick Saban is the winningest active head coach in college football, and has won seven national championships.

24.0: Combined sacks for Alabama pass rushers Dallas Turner, Chris Braswell and Justin Eboigbe this season.

Sugar Bowl: No. 3 Texas vs. No. 2 Washington
8:45 p.m. ET

Breaking down CFP matchups between Michigan-Alabama and Washington-Texas

154.2: The Longhorns have the best yardage differential among the four playoff teams this season, outgaining opponents by 154.2 YPG.

662: Texas totaled a season-high in yardage in its last game against Oklahoma State.

70.7: QB Quinn Ewers leads the Big 12 in completion percentage this season.

42: Number of tackles for Texas defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat, who was named the 2023 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.

163: Combined receptions by Xavier Worthy, Adonai Mitchell and Ja’Tavion Sanders, which led to 2,389 receiving yards and 17 receiving touchdowns this season.

27-20: The Huskies defeated the Longhorns in their last matchup in the 2022 Alamo Bowl.

No. 1: Washington’s offense is tops in the country and will be facing a Texas team that ranks 96th in pass defense this year.

13: The Huskies broke the school record for wins this season. They are the first Pac-12 team to go undefeated in a regular season since Oregon in 2010.

343.8: Passing YPG this season for Washington. The Huskies have had 300-plus passing yards in nine of 13 games this year.

4,000: Michael Penix Jr. is the first Washington QB in school history with back-to-back 4,000-yard passing seasons. Penix leads the FBS with 4,218 passing yards this season.

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