For the first time, the College Football Playoff will feature 12 teams instead of four like it has in the past. This gives more FBS teams an opportunity to compete for a national championship in the postseason.
It’s early, but fans of any team that has a legitimate chance of making the CFP are also keeping an eye on some other top-tier programs as the season goes on. Any significant loss, like Notre Dame falling against Northern Illinois, will impact the postseason picture.
With plenty more weeks to go where this could change, what would the CFP look like if the season were to end after Week 10?
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College Playoff Rankings
The College Football Playoff Selection Committee released its latest rankings on Tuesday, Nov. 26. So if the season were to end right now, the teams in the CFP would be:
- No. 1 Oregon
- No. 2 Texas
- No. 3 Miami
- No. 4 Boise State
- No. 5 Ohio State
- No. 6 Penn State
- No. 7 Notre Dame
- No. 8 Georgia
- No. 9 Tennessee
- No. 10 SMU
- No. 11 Indiana
- No. 12 Clemson
CFP Betting Odds
Here are the teams with the best college football betting odds to win the CFP, via BetMGM:
- Oregon +350
- Georgia +450
- Ohio State +450
- Texas +450
- Notre Dame +900
- Penn State +1000
- Tennessee +1800
- Alabama +2200
- SMU +3000
CFP Bracket Predictions
I predict Texas, Oregon, SMU, and Boise State will be the top four teams in the College Football Playoff at the end of the season.
I predict the conference championship winner ranked the next highest will be Arizona State, and I believe the CFP Selection Committee will rank the Sun Devils at No. 11.
From there, I’m projecting Georgia, Clemson, Ohio State, Tennessee, Penn State, Indiana, and Notre Dame will be in the CFP.
2025 CFP Playoff National Championship Predictions
I predict Texas will play Penn State in the College Football Playoff championship with Texas winning.
Right now, I think the Longhorns, no matter who’s at quarterback, are the best squad in college football. And I believe that even after their loss to Georgia.
Projecting the teams to win the SEC and Big Ten is especially difficult because those two conferences are always loaded with talent, and this year is particularly tough with Texas now in the SEC and Oregon now in the Big Ten.
But from my perspective, Texas and Penn State are the most complete teams and would be the most prepared to make it through a daunting CFP bracket.
2024 CFP Selection Show Schedule
The College Football Playoff Selection Show will be at noon ET on Sunday, Dec. 8, on ESPN.
Here’s when the CFP Selection Committee will release its rankings throughout the season.
| Date | Time | TV |
| Tuesday, Nov. 5 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN |
| Tuesday, Nov. 12 | 9-9:30 p.m. ET | ESPN |
| Tuesday, Nov. 19 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN |
| Tuesday, Nov. 26 | 8 p.m. ET | ESPN |
| Tuesday, Dec. 3 | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN |
| Sunday, Dec. 8 | noon ET | ESPN |
What Is The CFP?
The College Football Playoff is a postseason system where now 12 teams compete for the national championship. The CFP was introduced in 2014.
Before that year, the two teams playing in the national title were dedicated by the Bowl Championship Series (BCS). The two teams ranked the highest would compete for the championship while the next highest-ranked squads would face off in other bowl games.
Then the College Football Playoff was adopted in 2014, which allowed for four teams to square off, with two semifinal contests and one title game.
Ohio State won the first CFP title. Alabama won the most national championships during the four-team CFP era with three victories.
But now the CFP is entering a new stage in 2024.
New 12 Team College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff will feature 12 teams for the first time this season.
The five highest-ranked conference champions in the FBS – decided by the CFP selection committee – will make the field, as well as the seven highest-ranked teams that didn’t win a conference title.
The four conference title winners ranked the highest will earn a bye, while the remaining squads will compete in the first round.
The higher seeds in those matchups will host in the first round. The top-four conference winners with the bye will be given a bowl game, like the Sugar Bowl, and the four teams playing in the two semifinal games will also be assigned to another bowl.
Re-seeding will not occur, nor will alterations be made to avoid rematches from the regular season or contests between teams in the same conference.
2024-2025 College Football Playoff Schedule
The first round of the CFP will be played on Friday, Dec. 20, and Saturday, Dec. 21. The CFP quarterfinals will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 31, and Wednesday, Jan. 1. The CFP semifinals will occur on Thursday, Jan. 9, and Friday, Jan. 10.
In the first round, the No. 12-seeded team will play at the No. 5-seeded team. The No. 9 team will go on the road to face the No. 8 team. The No. 11 team will travel to take on the No. 6 team. And the No. 10 team will compete at the No. 7 team.
The winner of the 5/12 matchup will play the No. 4-seeded team in the quarterfinals. Whoever wins the 8/9 contest will go against the top-seeded team. The victor in the 6/11 contest will next face the No. 3 team. And whoever is triumphant in the 7/10 bout will compete against the No. 2-seeded team.
The winners of the games involving the No. 1-seeded team and the No. 4-seeded team will square off in the semifinals, and the winner of the games involving the No. 3-seeded team and the No. 2-seeded team will also play in the semifinals.
The victor of those two contests will see each other in the national championship.
CFP Championship Schedule
The national championship will be played on Monday, Jan. 20, 2024, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
