Many fans love college football because of the chaos that ensues nearly every season. It seems something unpredictable is bound to happen every week.
And the 2025 season has been no exception. Because of that, some resumes are hard to compare and fans have argued about which teams most deserve to make the College Football Playoff. And with conference championships this week, we only have five days until the CFP Selection Committee releases its final rankings and the field is set.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at a question some on social media have been arguing about that should be cleared up:
Will The ACC Champion Automatically Qualify For the College Football Playoff?
No, the champion of the ACC conference is not guaranteed a spot in the College Football Playoff.
And that question is especially important this year. Duke, which is 7-5 overall, is playing Virginia in the ACC title game this week. It’s possible that Duke wins that game and won’t make the CFP at all depending on tonight’s rankings.
Will One Team From Every Power Four Conference Automatically Qualify For the CFP?
No. The top-five highest ranked conference champions will qualify for the CFP.
That’s different from saying the ACC, or any Power Four conference champion, will automatically make the College Football Playoff field.
The rules can be confusing, especially because of the way the national media talks about seeding and which teams will make it.
CFP Rules Explained
One would be safe to assume that, if the CFP format remains the way it is, at least one team from every P4 conference would usually make the bracket. But that’s not exactly how it works.
Here’s an example: Let’s look at the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s rankings from last week and factor in the teams playing in conference championships. The five teams that are ranked the highest which are playing for different league titles this week are Ohio State (Big Ten), Georgia (SEC), Texas Tech (Big 12), Virginia (ACC), and Tulane (American). Those teams, regardless of where they were ranked, were in the projected field because of those five spots guaranteed for conference champions.
That’s why, a few weeks ago, Memphis was in the projected field despite not being in the top 25 at all because the Tigers were still the fifth-highest ranked theoretical conference champion.
But when factoring in all of the potential conference champs, it’s possible that Duke wins the ACC. The Blue Devils are 7-5 right now with losses against two Group of Five teams – Tulane and UConn.
Based on their resume, even if they win the ACC, many would argue that James Madison out of the Sun Belt or UNLV out of the Mountain West deserve that fifth spot for conference champions.
It seems to be certain at this point that the winner of the American Conference will make the CFP. Tulane has already been ranked in the top 25 leading up to this week. In the American title game, the Green Wave will play North Texas, which is 11-1 overall, has the best scoring offense in the country, and is top 10 in average scoring margin.
Will Duke Be Ranked Lower Than JMU Or UNLV?
I think the answer should be yes, but we will see after the CFP Selection Committee releases its rankings tonight.
James Madison is 18th in the country in strength of record (SOR) while UNLV is 38th. Duke, on the other hand, is 59th.
Duke does have a stronger strength of schedule, but I think that should only be factored in when records are close. Duke is barely above .500 while JMU (11-1) and UNLV (10-2) have been mostly dominant all season. And again, Duke has already lost to Tulane and UConn this season, which are two G5 teams lower than JMU, for example, in our weekly Group of Five Top 25 Media Poll.
Even if JMU lost to Troy in the Sun Belt title game and UNLV lost to Boise State in the Mountain West Championship, Boise State might have a stronger case to make the CFP field over Duke. The Broncos, at 8-4 overall, are 49th in the country in SOR.
