The stage is set for the College Football Playoff semifinals.

No. 6 Penn State punched its ticket to the Orange Bowl on Tuesday when it took down No. 3 Boise State. On Wednesday, No. 5 Texas survived a thriller against Arizona State to advance to the Cotton Bowl, where it will face No. 8 Ohio State. The Buckeyes clinched a spot in the semis after a dominant win over No. 1 Oregon.

On Thursday, No. 7 Notre Dame outlasted No. 2 Georgia to advance. The win means that all four teams that received automatic bids to the quarterfinal lost.

First Round

• Friday, Dec. 20: No. 7 Notre Dame 27, No. 10 Indiana 17
• Saturday, Dec. 21: No. 6 Penn State 38, No. 11 SMU 10
• Saturday, Dec. 21: No. 5 Texas 38, No. 12 Clemson 24
• Saturday, Dec. 21: No. 8 Ohio State 42, No. 9 Tennessee 17

Quarterfinals

• Tuesday, Dec. 31: No. 6 Penn State 31, No. 3 Boise State 14
• Wednesday, Jan. 1: No. 5 Texas 39, No. 4 Arizona State 31
• Wednesday, Jan. 1: No. 8 Ohio State 41, No. 1 Oregon 21
• Thursday, Jan. 2: No. 7 Notre Dame 23, No. 2 Georgia 10

Semifinals

• Thursday, Jan. 9: No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 7 Notre Dame at the Orange Bowl, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN/Watch ESPN
• Friday, Jan. 10: No. 5 Texas vs. No. 8 Ohio State at the Cotton Bowl, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN/Watch ESPN

National Championship Game

• Monday, Jan. 20: TBD vs. TBD at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN/Watch ESPN

No. 5 Texas vs. No. 8 Ohio State

Texas and Ohio State had very different experiences in their respective quarterfinal matchups.

The Longhorns led big against Arizona State at the half but allowed the Sun Devils to crawl back into the game and eventually force two overtimes, where Texas sealed the win with an interception.

In the Rose Bowl between Ohio State and Oregon, the Buckeyes crushed the Ducks, taking a 34-8 lead into the half and never looking back. Ohio State has coasted in its first two games against Tennesee and Oregon and has all the confidence in the world heading into the Cotton Bowl.

If Texas wants to give itself a chance against the red-hot Buckeyes, it starts with containing star receiver Jeremiah Smith. The freshman had 103 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns against Tennessee before posting a career-high 187 receiving yards and two scores against the Ducks.

The Longhorns will also need to get pressure on quarterback Will Howard—something neither Tennessee nor Oregon managed to do against the Buckeyes. Howard has yet to be sacked through two CFP games and has amassed 630 passing yards and five touchdowns in the postseason.

It's fair to say that Ohio State has more talent than any other team remaining in the College Football Playoff field, but Texas might be a close second. It starts with quarterback Quinn Ewers, who had a shaky game against Clemson in the first round before throwing for 322 yards and three touchdowns against Arizona State.

The Longhorns have multiple receivers that can torch secondaries, but Matthew Golden will likely be the one Ohio State will key in on. The junior had one of his best games of the season against Arizona State, hauling in seven receptions for 149 yards and a touchdown.

Texas will need its best from Ewers, Golden and the rest of the offense to even have a chance against arguably the hottest team in the country.

No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 7 Notre Dame

Penn State has had arguably the easiest path to the semifinals, taking down No. 11 SMU before beating the only Group of Five team, Boise State, in the quarterfinal.

As easy as that slate might have been, the Nittany Lions looked great in both games. They trounced SMU and held Boise State star running back Ashton Jeanty to a season-low 104 rushing yards to get past the Broncos.

Now Penn State will have a major test in Notre Dame, which dominated Georgia in the Sugar Bowl as the Bulldogs' backup quarterback Gunner Stockton couldn't shake the Fighting Irish's stout defense. The Fighting Irish defense forced three turnovers in the win.

Expect a somewhat low-scoring affair in the Orange Bowl. Notre Dame has the second-best scoring defense in the country, holding opponents to less than 14 points per game. Penn State has been solid on the defensive end as well, containing teams to just 15.8 points per game.

On offense, the Fighting Irish will hope to have sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love after he suffered an injury in Thursday's win. He rushed for just 19 yards on six carries. Love came into the game with more than 1,000 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns and would be integral in Notre Dame's championship quest.

Penn State will also rely on its ground game with a pair of backs, Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singelton, who have rushed for more than 1,000 yards this year. Allen has picked up 204 yards and a pair of scores through two Playoff games while Singleton has rushed for 177 yards and two touchdowns in the CFP.