College football preview: A look at Championship Week matchups and players to watch - ESPN

Champ week is just around the corner, and the stakes are high as teams look to gain one of the College Football Playoff's first-round byes.

No. 2 Texas and No. 5 Georgia will meet again for a second time this season in a rematch at the SEC championship game. Georgia handed Texas its only loss of the season, but will the Bulldogs be able to pull off the win again in Atlanta?

No. 15 Arizona State was listed in last place in the Big 12 preseason poll and have proved the conference wrong as it holds the top spot in the league. As the Sun Devils look to gain their first Big 12 title, what do they need to do to beat Iowa State?

Our college football experts preview all of Champ Week's biggest matchups and players to watch, and share quotes from players and coaches leading up to this week's games.

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SEC | ACC | Big Ten
Big 12 | Mountain West | Players to watch
Quotes of the Week

What does Texas need to do to win? It starts with not getting behind early and having to play catchup similar to the last game between the teams. Georgia built a 23-0 lead and took the home crowd out of the game, and keep in mind that this game is being played in Atlanta, meaning Mercedes-Benz Stadium will be painted in red and black. In keeping with that theme, the Longhorns need to be able to run the ball and not put their quarterback(s) in tough situations. After falling behind in the first game, Texas was forced to throw 49 times. Quinn Ewers was sacked five times and Arch Manning two times. Texas' pass protection could be even dicier in this game if star left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. (ankle) can't play or is limited. Clearly, Texas plans to use Manning situationally in the running game, which could help slow the Georgia pass rush.

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