The time has almost arrived to see how the first 12-team College Football Playoff field comes together.
How many SEC and Big Ten schools will make the playoff? Which conference champions will earn first-round byes?
The results for who will be playing in the 2024 College Football Playoff will be revealed Sunday morning.
When is the College Football Playoff selection show?
The final College Football Playoff rankings, as well as the 12-team CFP bracket, will be unveiled during a four-hour selection show that begins at 10 a.m. MT Sunday morning.
The show will air on ESPN.
The expectation, based on previous selections shows, is that the bracket will be revealed early on, with the rest of the show dedicated to analysis.
How will the College Football Playoff selection process work?
The five highest-ranked conference champions by the CFP committee will earn automatic berths, with the top four earning first-round byes. They will be seeded No. 1 to No. 4.
The final seven spots will be at-large selections.
Seeds No. 5 through No. 12 will comprise the fifth-highest ranked conference champion, as well as the at-large selections, which will be comprised of the next seven highest-ranked teams in the CFP rankings that are not conference champions.
If the fifth conference champion is ranked outside the top 12 in the final CFP rankings, they will receive the No. 12 seed. Otherwise, they will be seeded where they are ranked.
It’s important to note that Notre Dame, as an independent, is ineligible for a top 4 seed and a first-round bye, because it’s not in a conference.
Also, teams will not be re-seeded after Sunday’s final CFP rankings are released.
What is the 2024-25 College Football Playoff schedule?
First round
Dec. 20 or Dec. 21
- No. 12 seed at No. 5 seed — winner plays No. 4 seed in quarterfinals
- No. 11 seed at No. 6 seed — winner plays No. 3 seed in quarterfinals
- No. 10 seed at No. 7 seed — winner plays No. 2 seed in quarterfinals
- No. 9 seed at No. 8 seed — winner plays No. 1 seed in quarterfinals
TV notes: One game will be played Friday, Dec. 20 at 6 p.m. MST and televised on ABC/ESPN; the other three will be played on Saturday, Dec. 21 — at 10 a.m. MST on TNT, at 2 p.m. MST on TNT and at 6 p.m. MST on ABC/ESPN.
Quarterfinals
- Fiesta Bowl — Dec. 31, 5:30 p.m. MST, ESPN
- Peach Bowl — Jan. 1, 11 a.m. MST, ESPN
- Rose Bowl — Jan. 1, 3 p.m. MST, ESPN
- Sugar Bowl — Jan. 1, 6:45 p.m. MST, ESPN
Semifinals
- Orange Bowl — Jan. 9, 5:30 p.m. MST, ESPN
- Cotton Bowl — Jan. 10, 5:30 p.m. MST, ESPN
CFP National Championship
at Mercedes-Benz Stadium
- Semifinal winners — Jan. 20, 5:30 p.m. MST, ESPN
3 questions on conference championship weekend
Will the College Football Playoff bracket change much from from penultimate rankings?
Going into the final weekend before the 12-team CFP bracket is revealed, this is what the playoff matchups and seeding looked like based on the penultimate rankings:
First-round byes
1. Oregon
2. Texas
3. SMU
4. Boise State
First-round matchups
12. Arizona State at 5. Penn State
11. Alabama at 6. Notre Dame
10. Indiana at 7. Georgia
9. Tennessee at 8. Ohio State
It’s important to note that the CFP committee has expressly said that the previous week’s rankings have no bearing on the next week. In other words, the penultimate rankings released last Tuesday aren’t necessarily a road map for how the final rankings will come together.
No matter who wins the SEC championship game (No. 2 Texas vs. No. 5 Georgia) or the Big Ten championship (No. 1 Oregon vs. No. 3 Penn State) those two teams are expected to be the top two seeds in the College Football Playoff, with the two losing teams earning at-large CFP berths.
Where will the Big 12 champion end up?
Arizona State came into conference championship weekend at No. 15 in the CFP rankings, with Iowa State at No. 16.
The Sun Devils won Saturday’s Big 12 championship, beating the Cyclones 45-19.
That was Arizona State’s second win over a team in the CFP top 25, along with a 28-23 victory over No. 18 BYU. Earlier this year, the Cougars also beat No. 8 SMU, giving the Mustangs their only loss of the regular season.
Given the lopsided nature of Arizona State’s victory Saturday, can the Sun Devils jump into a top 4 spot, or are they destined to play in the first round as the fifth-highest ranked conference champion?
Boise State won the Mountain West championship on Friday night, and it’s expected the Broncos will be one of the four conference champions who earns a first-round bye, along with the SEC and Big Ten champions.
What happens if Clemson wins the ACC championship?
Ranked No. 8, SMU is currently the top-ranked ACC team, and they’ll face No. 17 Clemson in the ACC championship Saturday night (6 p.m. MST, ABC).
If the Mustangs win, they’ll be one of the five conference champions who earns an automatic berth, and right now, they’re on line to be the No. 3 overall seed.
If Clemson wins the ACC championship, though, it gets interesting.
The Tigers have three losses and are two spots behind the Big 12 champions going into the weekend. Would Clemson really jump to the No. 4 seed and get a first-round bye if it upsets a top 10 SMU team?