The much-anticipated College Football Playoff is set to kick off this weekend with four dynamic matchups highlighting the first round in the first edition of the 12-team format.

The matchups include No. 12 Clemson visiting No. 5 Texas, No. 9 Tennessee visiting No. 8 Ohio State, No. 11 SMU traveling to No. 6 Penn State and No. 10 Indiana paying a visit to No. 7-seed Notre Dame.  

There are plenty of ways to get action on these games, including the “Bet & Get Up to $1,000 in No Sweat Bets” offer from Fanatics that will be explained in more detail below.

Below, we’ll guide you through the first round of the College Football Playoff, providing everything that you need to know before you lock in your bets, including more details on the Fanatics promo, college football expert picks and more.

CFP Round 1 game previews

Indiana (No. 10) vs. Notre Dame (No. 7)

Kickoff 8 p.m. ET Friday
Spread Notre Dame -7.5
Over/Under 51.5 

The Hoosiers (11-1), whose last bowl victory came in 1991, have been one of the best stories in college football this season. The famously basketball-crazed institution used to be thrilled if its football team managed a .500 record and a bowl invitation. In a stunning about-face, first-year coach Curt Cignetti has led the Hoosiers to an 11-1 season and a bid in the first iteration of the 12-team playoff.

Indiana is known for its stark efficiency on both sides of the ball and a defense that ranks No. 6 nationally in scoring, allowing just 14.7 points per game. The Hoosiers have been criticized for their relatively modest schedule but have notched wins over bowl-bound teams such as Washington, Michigan and Nebraska. In their only game against a fellow playoff participant, they were routed 38-15 at Ohio State.

Notre Dame (11-1) was widely scoffed at following its 16-14 home loss in Week 2 as a four-touchdown favorite to Northern Illinois. But the Irish ripped off 10 consecutive decisive victories to end the season, with a 31-24 home victory over Louisville the lone one-score game in the bunch.

Led by a defense filled with high-end NFL draft prospects, the Irish are allowing just 13.6 points per game (No. 3 nationally) and are widely touted as the most physical club in the trenches on both sides of the ball.  

SportsLine expert Micah Roberts has a strong play in this matchup, and the SportsLine Projection Model says one team covers in 54% of simulations.  

SMU (No. 11) vs. Penn State (No. 6)

Kickoff Noon ET Saturday
Spread Penn State -8.5
Over/Under 54

The high-powered Mustangs soared to the top of the ACC in their stunning debut in the power conference. Led by a powerful offense that averages 40 points per game (No. 5 nationally), SMU breezed past the majority of its opponents with the exception of a clunk 18-15 loss to BYU in Week 3.

However, the Mustangs saw their breakout season thwarted by a stumble in the ACC championship game. They overcame a 17-point deficit against Clemson in the fourth quarter only to lose 34-31 on a walk-off field goal that they allowed following a one-play drive. Even so, dual-threat quarterback Kevin Jennings, who has accounted for 27 total touchdowns, might be the most talented player on the field.

The Nittany Lions (11-2) have been predictably solid and, as has been their nature in recent seasons, they took care of business against inferior opponents. However, the nagging trend that has plagued them under coach James Franklin surfaced again as they fell 20-13 at home to Ohio State amid several missed opportunities and couldn’t keep pace with top-ranked Oregon in the Big Ten Championship. They lost 45-37 despite putting up 523 yards of total offense.

Still, quarterback Drew Allar and a host of NFL-caliber weapons, augmented by a solid defense that allows just 16.4 points per game, gives this Penn State a strong profile for making a deep playoff run. 

SportsLine expert Micah Roberts is on one side of the spread in this matchup, and the SportsLine Projection Model says one team covers in almost 55% of simulations.

Clemson (No. 12) vs. Texas (No. 5)

Kickoff 4 p.m. ET Saturday
Spread Texas -11.5
Over/Under 52

Following a run to last year’s four-team playoff in the final edition of that format, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian’s ultra-talented club picked up where it left off. With the exception of a 27-24 win over upstart Vanderbilt, the Longhorns (11-2) largely avoided their once-regular habit of getting into nail-biters against inferior competition.

Instead, their other 10 wins came by at least 10 points each with zero late-game suspense involved as the dangerous Longhorns routinely throttled their opponents. Even so, the Georgia Bulldogs proved to be their kryptonite, notching a 30-15 Week 7 victory in Austin. The Bulldogs duplicated the feat in the SEC Championship, squeezing out a 22-19 overtime victory to account for both of Texas’ losses.

The Tigers (10-3) had a bot of an uneven season under the lofty standards set by coach Dabo Swinney, and they closed the regular season with a disappointing 17-14 home loss to rival South Carolina. However, their playoff hopes received unexpected life when Miami was upset 42-38 by Syracuse in their regular-season finale.

Clemson made the most of its opportunity and outlasted SMU 34-31 with a 56-yard field goal at the horn to prevail as a slight underdog. Behind a versatile offense putting up 37.4 points per game, the Tigers profile as a dangerous No. 12 seed. 

SportsLine expert Josh Nagel is on one side of the spread in this matchup, and the SportsLine Projection Model says one team covers in almost 60% of simulations.

Tennessee (No. 9) vs. Ohio State (No. 8)

Kickoff 8 p.m. ET Saturday
Spread Ohio State -8.5
Over/Under 47 

The Buckeyes (10-2) have seen their proverbial stock plummet amid their 13-10 loss to rival Michigan as a three-touchdown favorite in their regular-season finale. Critics of coach Ryan Day have plenty of new fodder to fuel the narrative that Day comes up short when it matters most. In six years at the helm, Day has won two conference titles, though none in the past four seasons, and has yet to compete for a national title. Ohio State’s other loss came 32-31 to top-ranked Oregon on the road in Week 7 as the Buckeyes saw the clock run out on their potential game-winning drive.

Even so, the reduction of expectations for a club ripe with NFL-ready talent could be a blessing in disguise for the Buckeyes. They still managed to snag a home game in the 12-team playoff and are the only team in the field to rank in the top 10 in both total offense and defense. Their 10.9 points-per-game average on defense is tops in the country.

The Volunteers (10-2) have the most balanced offense in the 12-team playoff, averaging 231 passing yards and 232 rushing yards per game. Although they are known more for their offense under coach Josh Heupel, an underrated defense is allowing just 13.9 points per contest.

However, both of Tennessee’s losses came away from Knoxville, and a 19-14 loss to Arkansas as a two-touchdown favorite wrecked its hopes of an SEC title. 

SportsLine expert Jeff Hochman is on one side of the spread in this matchup, and the SportsLine Projection Model says one team covers in almost 63% of simulations.

The Fanatics Sportsbook welcome bonus has a structure that works as 10 days of bet insurance promos, as opposed to just one wager. You can earn up to $100 in No Sweat Bets daily for 10 days, adding up to $1,000 in potential value.

Your first bet each day during the promotional period is matched at a 100% rate. So if you place your first bet for $10, you receive $10 in bonus bets. If you placed a $100 first bet for all 10 days, you would receive $1,000 in No Sweat Bets from the promo.

Follow  the steps below to sign up for a Fanatics Sportsbook account and claim the welcome promo:

1. Head to the Fanatics Sportsbook mobile app.
2. Register for a new account at Fanatics Sportsbook, create a username and password, supply the last four digits of your SSN and permit the site to check your location.
3. Agree to the terms and conditions of Fanatics Sportsbook.
4. Make your first deposit.
5. Place your first bet of at least $5 on any market at -200 odds or longer.
6. Earn a bonus bet for your first bet equal to whatever you wagered for a maximum of $100 in bonuses.
7. Continue this process for 10 days, earning as much as $1,000 in No Sweat Bets.

The current Fanatics Sportsbook promo is complex compared to most industry sign-up bonuses, especially other bet insurance promos. This offer can be viewed as five individual first-bet insurance offers instead of an overarching one. 

Sign up for an account, deposit and start placing bets. Your first bet each of the 10 days is matched by 100%, for a maximum of $100 in No Sweat Bets daily. For example, if you place a $20 first bet, you get $20 in bonus bets. If you place a $250 first bet, you get $100 in bonus bets for the day.

Your first bet must be for at least $5 and on -200 odds or steeper to qualify for a bonus. Each wager can be placed on any betting market if it meets the minimum odds requirement. All bonus bets you receive are only subject to a 1x playthrough requirement, so using them once will unlock any profit you get as withdrawable cash. Your first bet doesn’t have to win for you to recover a bonus; it just has to be settled, win or lose.

The period between signing up and accessing the bonus is 10 days. Because this period starts immediately after registering, it makes sense to start quickly. All bonus bets you receive from the Fanatics Sportsbook promo must be used within seven days of receipt.

Bonus bets at Fanatics Sportsbook work like other online sports betting sites. When you use them, you never recover the value. If you place a winning wager using a $100 No Sweat Bet at Fanatics Sportsbook, you only get back the potential profit, not the $100 value.

See the Fanatics sportsbook review for a detailed breakdown of the bonus.

The primary advantage of exploring the welcome bonus with Fanatics is that the possibility of earning up to $1,000 in bonus bets is a far greater incentive than is offered at most other sportsbooks. One drawback would be for low-volume novice players who would rather not place bets for 10 consecutive days in order to maximize this promotions, instead preferring the more simple single bet unlocking bonuses.

Responsible gaming with Fanatics

If you click on the “Responsible Gambling” icon on the Fanatics Sportsbook mobile app, you will be taken to the web. There, you will find all kinds of helpful self-service tools that you can set for yourself, such as deposit limits, single wager limits, time-based wager limits, timeouts and a self-exclusion list.

Also on this page are resources for helping those in need of problem gambling assistance.

Moreover, Fanatics posts state-specific resources on this page that will differ depending on which state your account is registered in.