College Football Playoff Bracket: NCAAF Season 2024-25

Since the College Football Playoff’s inception, programs nationwide have been begging for an expansion. Following the end of the BCS era, the College Football Playoff originated with four teams. 

The 2024-25 format marks the first expansion season with 12 teams. Oregon is currently the top-ranked team in the College Football Playoff bracket, but there are still plenty of games with playoff implications on conference championship weekend. 

The field of 12 consists of the five highest-ranked conference champions and the following seven highest-ranked teams in the College Football Playoff rankings. The four highest-ranked conference champions receive a first-round bye, but the other eight teams will be in action on December 20-21. 

First-round games are played at the home of the higher seed. The Quarterfinals will occur at the Fiesta, Sugar, and Rose Bowl on New Year’s Eve and Day. The semifinals will occur one week later at the Orange and Cotton Bowls.

Once the conference champions are decided, the College Football Playoff bracket will be set on December 8. The rankings have changed weekly, and we expect a significant shakeup once the conference championship games are finalized. 

The winner of the College Football Playoff bracket is the NCAAF National Champion. Check out some of the best online betting sites for betting on college football in 2024-25.

The College Football Playoff Bracket Format 

The college football playoff bracket consists of 12 teams in 2024-25, with the four highest-ranked conference champions receiving a first-round bye. These four teams are currently Oregon (Big Ten Conference), Boise State (Mountain West Conference), Texas (Southeastern Conference), and SMU (Atlantic Coast Conference).

These teams will be seeded 1-4 following conference championship weekend and the rest of the college football playoff bracket. The higher-rated seeds will host their first-round game. 

• #12 at #5

• #11 at #6

• #10 at #7 

• #9 at #8 

The quarterfinal and semifinal locations will rotate from year to year. However, they will always be the site of second and third-round games. The title game will always be held at neutral sites, as cities will bid to host the event.

The current state of the CFP Bracket after Week 14 games can be seen below.

When Did the College Football Playoff Bracket Begin? 

The College Football Playoff began in 2014-15. Four teams made the field when it originated, and the bubble teams were invited to play in New Year’s Six bowl games. 

When only four teams were invited to play in the College Football Playoff bracket, there were many critiques. The teams were chosen from a committee, and many felt the selectors were biased. 

While this may or may not have been the case, only having four teams in the field was bound to hurt feelings. Therefore, the college football playoff bracket needed to expand. 

Yet, anything was better than the BCS era between 1998 and 2014. The national championship matchup was chosen based on a ranking system, and there were no playoffs. Before 1998, there was no official national championship game, so college football has changed massively over the past two and a half decades. 

Wager $5 at FanDuel for $150 in Bonus Bets

When Does the 2024-25 College Football Playoff Bracket Start?

The College Football Playoff bracket will begin with first-round games on Friday, December 20, and Saturday, December 21. The quarterfinals are on December 31, 2024, and January 1, 2024.

The Orange and Cotton Bowls will host the national semifinal games on January 9-10, 2025, the typical championship game week. However, the title has been moved back with playoff expansion to January 20, 2025, and it will occur on a Monday night in Atlanta. 

How Does College Football Playoff Bracket Qualifying Work? 

The College Football Playoff committee puts together rankings weekly beginning in the middle of college football season. Many have coined the College Football Playoff as an invitational tournament because the participants are based on a human ranking system where there is bias. 

For example, in 2024-25, many people stated Alabama didn’t deserve to make the College Football Playoff bracket because they had lost three games. However, the Crimson Tide are currently seeded 11th and -400 to make the field of 12. 

There is an Alabama and an SEC bias in college football, and it has shown throughout the committee’s selection process. The top 12 teams make the playoffs, but this is based on how judges view the teams. 

The top four conference champions receive a bye. Boise State, a mid-major program, has a bye because they’re ranked ahead of the potential Big 12 Champion. Yet, if the Broncos lost to UNLV on Friday in the Mountain West Conference Championship, the Big 12 winner would receive the bye. 

There must be a non-power four school in the College Football Playoff bracket. This is the only rule that helps teams outside the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC get a bid to the playoffs. In the current NIL climate of college football, it’s hard for small schools to compete, but the automatic bid helps. 

Bet $5, Get $150 in Bonus Bets at FanDuel

Will the College Football Playoff Bracket Expand to 16 Teams?

If the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket is a success, the committee will likely expand the field to 16 teams. More teams generate more money for the College Football Playoff, media, and universities. 

An expanded field also adds more interest by bringing in extra fanbases. Eventually, seeing FBS expand to the FCS Playoffs model wouldn't be surprising. In the FCS, 24 teams, including ten automatic qualifiers, make the playoffs. 

The automatic qualifiers would be less significant in FBS because fewer conferences have competitive teams. A rankings committee would select the rest of the teams at large. 

Who Selects the College Football Playoff Bracket?

The College Football Playoff committee consists of 13 members in 2024-25. The members change consistently. 

What to Expect in the College Football Playoff Bracket? 

The first year of College Football Playoff expansion is going to be wild. Oregon is the betting favorite on FanDuel heading into the playoffs. 

The Ducks must beat Penn State in the Big Ten Championship to claim the top seed and a bye in a College Football Playoff. Oregon is followed by Texas, which is in a similar spot in the SEC. 

The Longhorns must beat the Bulldogs to be a top seed in the College Football Playoff. If Georgia wins, they will jump to Texas and be the SEC team, given a bye. 

SMU will earn the next bye despite not having a win over a currently ranked opponent. If Clemson wins the ACC title, they will jump into the field and potentially knock out SMU. 

However, if Clemson wins the game, SMU’s College Football Playoff chances may vanish. There are talks of Alabama knocking out SMU if they can’t win the ACC Championship. 

Based on SMU’s schedule, this seems fair, but the College Football Playoff committee stated they don’t want to punish teams for playing in their conference championship. For Alabama to make the College Football Playoff guaranteed, SMU must win the conference championship. 

The chaos is already ensuing and will only intensify as the College Football Playoff bracket gets underway. If you’re looking to bet on the playoffs this season, we have tons of sportsbooks and promo codes you can utilize. 

FanDuel Sportsbook offers new customers $150 in bonus bets after they bet $5 on the app. Other platforms like BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, and bet365 are also great choices for betting on the College Football Playoff bracket.

More info on where to bet on College Football can be found here.

Join FanDuel and Get $150 in Bonus Bets