The nature of the College Football Playoff is to pin the best teams in the country against one another, allowing debates over the best squad to be settled in the race for a national championship.
With 136 FBS teams, the selection process for the CFP can be controversial, but for the most part, only the elite teams wind up competing in the playoff bracket. Every once in a while though, that doesn't matter much, as a CFP matchup becomes a one-sided affair.
From the 2023 national championship game, to some lighter first-round opponents in the first-ever 12-team CFP in 2024, there have been some significant blowouts in the history of college football's postseason.
Here are the 11 biggest blowouts in the history of the College Football Playoff.
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1. Georgia vs. TCU, 2023 (58 points)
- Final Score: Georgia 65, TCU 7
- Date: Jan. 9, 2023
The biggest blowout in CFP history came in a title game, as in 2023, Georgia bludgeoned TCU 65-7 to win the national championship. While the Horned Frogs had made the game by beating Michigan 51-45 in the semifinal, they found no such luck against the Bulldogs.
The 58-point victory for Georgia wasn't just the most lopsided win in a CFP title game; it marked the biggest win in any title game, and at the time, it was the largest margin of victory in any bowl game at the FBS level.
As the Bulldogs repeated as the champions and completed a 15-0 season, Stetson Bennett threw for 304 yards and four touchdowns, adding another two scores on the ground. Branson Robinson scored twice on the ground, Kendall Milton had a rushing touchdown, Ladd McConkey caught two touchdowns and Brock Bowers and Adonai Mitchell both caught one pass in the end zone — all while TCU scored just one first-quarter touchdown.
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2. Oregon vs. Florida State, 2015 (39 points)
- Final Score: Oregon 59, Florida State 20
- Date: Jan. 1, 2015
A Pac-12-ACC matchup came in the 2015 Rose Bowl, as second-seeded Oregon took on third-seeded Florida State in Pasadena. Unfortunately for the Seminoles, the CFP semifinal game was all Ducks.
Oregon beat the defending national champs 59-20, advancing to the inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship Game. In the game, the Ducks totaled 639 total yards, including 301 rushing, breaking the record for the most points (59) scored in a Rose Bowl.
Marcus Mariota had 338 passing yards, two touchdown passes, one interception and a rushing touchdown in the win, while Thomas Tyner and Royce Freeman added four more scores on the ground. The Ducks went on to fall by 22 points to Ohio State in the championship.
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3. Alabama vs. Michigan State, 2015 (38 points)
- Final Score: Alabama 38, Michigan State 0
- Date: December 31, 2015
Alabama was an established powerhouse under Nick Saban by 2015, and he continued flexing his coaching muscles in that year's College Football Playoff. Matched up against Michigan State in the semifinal, the Crimson Tide made light work of the Spartans.
While most of Alabama's work was done in the second half, including Jake Coker's two touchdown passes to Calvin Ridley. Derrick Henry was his typical dominant self as well, running for 75 yards and two touchdowns.
Alabama picked off MSU quarterback Connor Cook twice, controlling the game from start to finish as it advanced to the title game.
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4. LSU vs. Oklahoma, 2019 (35 points)
- Final Score: LSU 63, Oklahoma 28
- Date: Dec. 28, 2019
There's a reason the 2019 LSU Tigers are considered one of the best teams in college football history. In their semifinal playoff game, the Tigers exploded for 63 points against the country's fourth-ranked team, Oklahoma.
Even by the end of the first quarter, LSU led 21-7, and by halftime, it was 49-14. The Sooners simply could not contain Joe Burrow and Ed Orgeron's offense; on the day, Burrow had 493 passing yards and an unreal seven touchdown passes, tying the NCAA records for touchdown passes in a half and touchdown passes in a bowl game. Burrow also ran for an eighth touchdown.
Justin Jefferson caught four of Burrow's touchdowns, setting a College Football Playoff record, Terrace Marshall Jr. Had two and Thaddeus Moss had another.
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5. Clemson vs. Ohio State, 2016 (31 points)
- Final Score: Clemson 31, Ohio State 0
- Date: Dec. 31, 2016
There's only two shutouts on this list of CFP blowouts, and one came in 2016, when Clemson decimated Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl, which was a playoff semifinal game.
Urban Meyer coached his unit to a 31-0 win, scoring in all four quarters while his defense didn't allow a single point to the Buckeyes. Despite Deshaun Watson's two interceptions, he also ran for two scores and threw for another.
Ohio State registered just nine first-downs all night, with quarterback J.T. Barrett throwing a pair of interceptions as Clemson moved onto the championship.
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T-6. Penn State vs. SMU, 2024 (28 points)
- Final Score: Penn State 38, SMU 10
- Date: Dec. 21, 2024
In the first year of the 12-team CFP, Penn State earned the right to host a first-round game in Beaver Stadium, and the opposing environment did not go well for the SMU Mustangs. They were blown out, 38-10, as the Nittany Lions moved onto the quarterfinals.
Penn State's first offensive score didn't come until the five-minute mark of the second quarter, but James Franklin's team was already up multiple scored by then — SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings threw two pick-sixes in the first half.
The Mustangs didn't find the end zone until the fourth quarter, and even on a day where quarterback Drew Allar had just 127 yards and no touchdowns, Penn State rolled to a CFP win.
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T-6. Alabama vs. Ohio State, 2021 (28 points)
- Final Score: Alabama 52, Ohio State 24
- Date: Jan. 11, 2021
The Alabama Crimson Tide capped a perfect season with a huge win over Ohio State in the 2021 CFP championship, scoring 35 points in the first half alone to coast against the Buckeyes.
All night, the Crimson Tide offense was on fire — quarterback Mac Jones threw for 464 yards and five touchdown passes, running back Najee Harris scored three times, and Heisman Trophy winning-receiver Devonta Smith took his 12 catches for 215 yards and three touchdowns.
The Buckeyes were playing keep-up from the start, and Alabama won yet another national title under Nick Saban.
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T-6. Clemson vs. Alabama, 2019 (28 points)
- Final Score: Clemson 44, Alabama 16
- Date: Jan. 7, 2019
Alabama came into the 2019 title game as the No. 1-ranked team, but the final score said otherwise. The second-ranked Clemson Tigers had no issues en route to a 15-0 record and national title, winning by 28 points.
Trevor Lawrence had a clean 347 passing yards and three touchdown passes, which went to Justyn Ross, Tee Higgins and Travis Etienne, who also scored twice on the ground. Dabo Swinney's squad used 17 second-quarter points to build its advantage.
Clemson won its second national title in three years with its blowout win.
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9. Clemson vs. Notre Dame, 2018 (27 points)
- Final Score: Clemson 30, Notre Dame 3
- Date: Dec. 29, 2018
In a CFP semifinal game, Clemson came in and routed Notre Dame in the 2018 Cotton Bowl in Arlington, Texas. The Tigers, who also went on to blow out Alabama in the championship game, walked away with a dominant 30-3 win over the Fighting Irish.
Clemson entered with a 13-0 record behind quarterback Trevor Lawrence, and even a suspension for three players, including starting defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence, coming into the game didn't slow the Tigers down.
Of Clemson's 30 points, 27 went unanswered from the first-quarter on. Lawrence threw touchdown passes to Justyn Ross (2) and Tee Higgins, then Travis Etienne put a cap on the win with a 62-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
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10. Ohio State vs. Tennessee, 2024 (25 points)
- Final Score: Ohio State 42, Tennessee 17
- Date: Dec. 21, 2024
In hindsight, the fact that Ohio State was the No. 9 seed in the 2024 College Football Playoff bracket looks laughable, but the eventual-champion Buckeyes faced significant questions coming onto the playoff after losing their regular-season finale to Michigan.
However, Ryan Day's unit came out and dominated to open the CFP, cruising to a 21-0 start in the first quarter against Josh Huepel's Tennessee squad.
The Buckeyes advanced to the quarterfinals with a 42-17 win as quarterback Will Howard threw for 311 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, freshman phenom Jeremiah Smith caught two touchdown passes with 103 yards, and running backs TreVeyson Henderson and Quinshon Judkins both scored twice.
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11. Georgia vs. Michigan, 2021 (23 points)
- Final Score: Georgia 34, Michigan 11
- Date: Dec. 31, 2021
At the 2021 Orange Bowl, Georgia met Michigan for one of the two CFP semifinal games. And on New Year's Eve, it was all Bulldogs.
Kirby Smart and Georgia, which would go on to beat Alabama in the title game, took down Jim Harbaugh's Wolverines by 23 points, getting out to a 27-3 lead by halftime and winning 34-11.
Stetson Bennett threw for 310 yards and three touchdowns in the win, throwing his scoring passes to Brock Bowers, James Cook and Jermaine Burton.
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College Football Playoff winners history
Here's a look at the past CFP national title winners.
Season | Winner | Final Score |
2014-15 | Ohio State | Ohio State 42, Oregon 20 |
2015-16 | Alabama | Alabama 45, Clemson 40 |
2016-17 | Clemson | Clemson 35, Alabama 31 |
2017-18 | Alabama | Alabama 26, Georgia 23 (OT) |
2018-19 | Clemson | Clemson 44, Alabama 16 |
2019-20 | LSU | LSU 42, Clemson 25 |
2020-21 | Alabama | Alabama 52, Ohio State 24 |
2021-22 | Georgia | Georgia 33, Alabama 18 |
2022-23 | Georgia | Georgia 65, TCU 7 |
2023-24 | Michigan | Michigan 34, Washington 13 |
2024-25 | Ohio State | Ohio State 34, Notre Dame 23 |
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