College Football Playoff: Urban Meyer makes pick for Orange Bowl between Oregon, Texas Tech

The quarterfinal round of the College Football Playoff is finally here. There, the Orange Bowl is set to play host to one of the most intriguing matchups of the postseason, with fourth-seeded Texas Tech set to take on fifth-seeded Oregon.

Ahead of the game, Urban Meyer shared how excited he is for the Orange Bowl on The Triple Option. Both teams are teams that he is very high on, but someone has to win. For now, Meyer expects that to be the Ducks.

“As many bad games as there were in the original Playoff games,” Meyer said. “These are phenomenal games. I went back and love Texas Tech. Saw them up close and personal. I made the comment many, many times; that is an SEC-looking team. But I went back and I looked at their schedule. They played Utah and they played BYU twice. Other than that, they had better cats and, really, they had better players than those two teams. So, this will be the first time that the Texas Tech — they got what you got and maybe some more, and it’s on the road.”

Texas Tech went 11-1 during the regular season, only losing to Arizona State. Since then, they’ve gone on to win the Big 12 Championship Game and earn a first round bye in the College Football Playoff. Oregon, on the other hand, had to earn its way to the Orange Bowl after missing the Big Ten Championship Game by beating James Madison in the opening round of the Playoff.

“So, this is come to Jesus time for that locker room at Texas Tech,” Meyer said. “I think it’s going to be phenomenal. I think it’s going to be a walk-off game. Remember, Oregon struggled just a little bit slowing — they gave up 34 to James Madison.”

For Meyer, the expectation is that it’s going to be a close Orange Bowl. In fact, he has it coming down to the wire. There, Oregon will come out on top in the closing moments of the game.

“I just think this is gonna be an old school war,” Meyer said. “I can’t wait to watch this one. I love the head coaches, I love the players, I love the demeanor, I love the way they play the game. I just think I’m going to take Oregon with a walk-off right at the end.”

The Orange Bowl is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. EST on New Year’s Day. The winner will go on to play either Alabama or Indiana in the Peach Bowl.