CFP Rankings Predictions & Projections: Who Will Be In The 2025 College Football Playoff Rankings?

We only have one more week before the final FBS College Football Playoff rankings come out. And several teams have strong cases to make it.

Here’s a look at the CFP picture as of right now:

College Football Playoff Bracket Predictions

Here’s the teams I predict will be in the College Football Playoff field based on the CFP Selection Committee’s rankings tonight:

• Ohio State
• Indiana
• Georgia
• Texas Tech
• Texas A&M
• Oregon
• Oklahoma
• Notre Dame
• Alabama
• Virginia
• Tulane

CFP Betting Odds

Here are the teams with the best college football betting odds to win the CFP and national championship, via BetMGM:

• Ohio State +160
• Indiana +450
• Georgia +800
• Notre Dame +900
• Texas A&M +1000
• Texas Tech +1000
• Oregon +1100
• Alabama +1300
• Ole Miss +3000
• Oklahoma +6000

2025 CFP Playoff National Championship Predictions

I predict Indiana will play Oregon in the College Football Playoff national championship with Oregon winning.

Right now, I think the Ducks, led by quarterback Dante Moore, have a good shot of dominating in the postseason.

I really like how Indiana has played, and I think the Hoosiers have a good chance to make a deep run considering what QB Fernando Mendoza has done. But I think Oregon is capable of playing at the highest level in the CFP.

2025 G5 CFP Bracket Predictions

I predict Tulane will be the only Group of Five team to make the College Football Playoff as of right now. That’s only if the Green Wave win the American Conference Championship against North Texas, which could also make the CFP if it wins the league title.

But if Duke beats Virginia in the ACC Championship, James Madison could also make the field assuming the Dukes win the Sun Belt.

The Case For Tulane

Tulane’s CFP candidacy hinges on its strength of schedule. If you’re someone who values SOS, even if records aren’t the same, then the Green Wave are probably your No. 1 team in the G5.

It’s tough to argue against what Tulane has done this year, especially in the non-conference portion of its schedule. The Green Wave beat Northwestern 23-3 and Duke 34-27 earlier this year. 

But Tulane also has two losses. For the sake of this discussion, it would be easy to excuse the Green Wave’s first loss of the year, a 45-10 defeat at Ole Miss, which was arguably a top-five team in the country. 

But you can’t ignore Tulane losing 48-26 to UTSA, which is 6-6 and barely earned bowl-eligibility. That performance is a massive blemish on an otherwise solid resume.

However, it also can’t be ignored how Tulane has won. The Green Wave have beat teams like East Carolina, Army, and South Alabama all in one-possession games. Where JMU and North Texas have dominated in games they were favored in, Tulane has often barely survived.

Still, Tulane has 10 wins against a better collection of teams compared to James Madison and North Texas, and that needs to be taken into account.

The Case For JMU

James Madison hasn’t had a strong strength of schedule – though it looked good going into the season. Nonetheless, the Dukes have been mostly dominant all year.

After beating Weber State to start, the Dukes were competitive with a good Louisville team and were leading at halftime before eventually falling 28-14. But that Week 2 loss is JMU’s last and only loss of the year thus far.

The Dukes have won 10 straight games, and all but two of those contests were been decided by double digits. One of those close games, a 14-7 win at Georgia State which is now 1-11 overall, is a game some JMU critics will surely point to.

JMU couldn’t control how some of its opponents, like Texas State and Liberty, haven’t lived up to preseason expectations. But the Dukes can control how they win. They’re sixth in the country in average scoring margin (plus-20.6 points per game).

The Case For North Texas

North Texas doesn’t have a strong strength of schedule, but the Mean Green have been mostly dominant, especially in recent weeks.

UNT started the year with five straight wins. Three of those were decided by double digits. But then the Mean Green, in a massively anticipated matchup, lost 63-36 at home to South Florida.

USF is undoubtedly a good team. But the perception of that result has changed since USF lost two conference games and is now out of the CFP picture. And while JMU’s resume is similar to UNT’s, JMU hasn’t been blown out yet.

Still, the Mean Green have been statistically impressive, especially in their last six games since the USF loss. For the season, they’re seventh in the country in average scoring margin at plus-20 points per game. 

And that’s in large part because of their offense. UNT leads the FBS with 46.8 points per game and 511.8 yards per game. 

The argument for Tulane compared to James Madison is that Tulane is playing in the American and therefore has a tougher schedule. Even though North Texas is also in the American, UNT can’t necessarily rely on that argument as the Mean Green didn’t have to play teams like Memphis or Tulane – at least until the conference title game.