Get Pumped for the College Football Playoff with Hard-Hitting Lego Action

Both of the College Football Playoff’s semifinals were scheduled for Thursday, with top seed Clemson and fourth-ranked Oklahoma kicking off the playoff at 4 p.m. Played in Miami’s Sun Life Stadium, Clemson held off the Sooners by a final score of 37-17 in the Orange Bowl, behind a dominant running game. “It definitely presents a unique challenge”, said Burke Magnus, ESPN’s evp of programming and scheduling.

Sports columnists around the country have not held back in their criticism of the NCAA for its handling of the situation and its insistence that the two games be played on New Year’s Eve instead of moving them to another night.

Both games air on ESPN. It gets a little weird when they start beating up big robot-like opponents, but otherwise it’s a pretty cool way to get amped for two of the biggest college football games of the season.

“We know the audience will be huge, but at the same time, I think there will be a level of competition that is going to be very different from past year”, Magnus said.

Last year, the two semifinal bouts – which included Ohio State’s victory against Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and Oregon’s romp of Florida State in the Rose Bowl – took place on New Year’s Day.

And for once, ESPN has a plan to measure those viewers who choose to go out to local sports bars.

The inaugural College Football Playoff was a rousing success one year ago, as the NCAA ditched its traditional bowl game setup in favor of a more conventional tournament structure. “We were too close into the window of time for things to change with buildings, venues, all that stuff”, he said.

Unless New Year’s Eve falls on a weekend, the first of the national semifinals in the foreseeable future will be played while some people are still at work. But ESPN is betting that before people are cheering the ball drop in Times Square, they’ll be cheering for another touchdown in the fourth quarter. “We reviewed [the ESPN request] and rejected it”, said the Pac-12 commissioner and CFP management committee member, adding, “We like the concept that we’ve developed for New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day”. After years in the wilderness, the Clemson Tigers were undefeated this regular season, going 13-0. If you didn’t, Disney is making sure you know – whether you’re interested in the games or not.

Michigan State and Alabama duke it out at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.