The first 12-team bracket of the College Football Playoff is set, and in true college football fashion, it’s not without some drama.
All of the bracket was essentially locked heading into Selection Day on Sunday except for the final spot: SMU or Alabama? The committee had a decision to make between an 11-2 Mustangs team that lost the ACC Championship by a field goal to a 10-3 Clemson squad or a 9-3 Alabama team that was idle this week after failing to make the SEC Championship. Do you punish a team for making their conference championship and coming up short, setting a precedent in the future? Or do you reward a team with a tougher schedule? There were fair debates for both sides, but the committee has made its choice.
SMU is in the playoff.
While the Mustangs had a weaker strength of schedule and less notable marquee wins, they kept it close with a fiery Clemson team, and the committee didn’t punish them for that loss. Alabama needed the committee’s favor after the SMU loss, but in the end, the Tide didn’t help their case by losing, 24-3, to a mediocre Oklahoma team in late November. It would likely be a different story had the Tide won that game as expected.
Keep reading to see who’s in and who’s out, as well as the teams that will receive first round byes and first round home-field advantage, the playoff schedule, and the final top 25.
Who are the 12 teams in the 2024-25 College Football Playoff bracket?
Here are the 12 teams playing in the 2024-25 College Football Playoff, listed by seed.
BOLD Indicates a team that earned a guaranteed bid as one of the top five conference champions.
* Indicates a team receiving a first round bye.
^ Indicates a team hosting a first round game.
- Oregon (13-0)*
- Georgia (11-2)*
- Boise State (12-1)*
- Arizona State (11-2)*
- Texas (11-2)^
- Penn State (11-2)^
- Notre Dame (11-1)^
- Ohio State (10-2)^
- Tennessee (10-2)
- Indiana (11-1)
- SMU (11-2)
- Clemson (10-3)
Seeding is not necessarily reflective of final ranking by the committee. Despite receiving the third and fourth seeds, respectively, as conference champions, Boise State and Arizona State were actually “ranked” lower by the committee. Boise State was ranked No. 9, and Arizona State was ranked No. 12. Alabama was the first team out (formally ranked No. 11), and Miami was the second team out (formally ranked No. 13).
For reference, here was the final ranking (not seeding) by the committee.
- Oregon
- Georgia
- Texas
- Penn State
- Notre Dame
- Ohio State
- Tennessee
- Indiana
- Boise State
- SMU
- Alabama
- Arizona State
- Miami
16. Clemson
What teams receive guaranteed bids into the 2024-25 College Football Playoff bracket?
The top five conference champions received guaranteed bids: Oregon (Big Ten), Georgia (SEC), Boise State (Mountain West), Arizona State (Big 12), and Clemson (ACC).
What teams have first round byes in the 2024-25 College Football Playoff?
The top four conference champions received first round byes: Oregon (Big Ten), Georgia (SEC), Boise State (Mountain West), and Arizona State (Big 12).
2024-25 College Football Playoff Schedule
First Round
- Dec. 20 @ 8 p.m. ET: 10 Indiana vs. 7 Notre Dame
- Where: South Bend, Indiana
- Watch: ESPN/ABC
- Dec. 21 @ 12 p.m. ET: 11 SMU vs. 6 Penn State
- Where: State College, Pennsylvania
- Watch: TNT & Max
- Dec. 21 @ 4 p.m. ET: 12 Clemson vs. 5 Texas
- Where: Austin, Texas
- Watch: TNT & Max
- Dec. 21 @ 8 p.m. ET: 9 Tennessee vs. 8 Ohio State
- Where: Columbus, Ohio
- Watch: ESPN/ABC
Quarterfinals
- Dec. 31 @ 7:30 p.m. ET: Winner of SMU/Penn State vs. 3 Boise State
- Where: VRBO Fiesta Bowl
- Watch: ESPN/ABC
- Jan. 1 @ 1 p.m. ET: Winner of Clemson/Texas vs. 4 Arizona State
- Where: Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl
- Watch: ESPN/ABC
- Jan. 1 @ 5 p.m. ET: Winner of Tennessee/Ohio State vs. 1 Oregon
- Where: Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential
- Watch: ESPN/ABC
- Jan. 1 @ 8:45 p.m. ET: Winner of Indiana/Notre Dame vs. 2 Georgia
- Where: Allstate Sugar Bowl
- Watch: ESPN/ABC
Semifinals
- Jan. 9 @ 7:30 p.m. ET: Winner of SMU/Penn State vs. 3 Boise State against Winner of Indiana/Notre Dame vs. 2 Georgia
- Where: Capital One Orange Bowl
- Watch: ESPN
- Jan. 10 @ 7:30 p.m. ET: Winner of Clemson/Texas vs. 4 Arizona State against Winner of Tennessee/Ohio State vs. 1 Oregon
- Where: Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic
- Watch: ESPN
Championship
- Jan. 20 @ 7:30 p.m. ET: College Football Playoff National Championship
Final 2024 College Football Playoff Top 25 Rankings
In addition to announcing the official playoff bracket, the final top 25 of 2024 was released Sunday. Italicized teams are those that made the playoff (see more above).
- Oregon (13-0)
- Georgia (11-2)
- Texas (11-2)
- Penn State (11-2)
- Notre Dame (11-1)
- Ohio State (10-2)
- Tennessee (10-2)
- Indiana (11-1)
- Boise State (12-1)
- SMU (11-2)
- Alabama (9-3)
- Arizona State (11-2)
- Miami (10-2)
- Ole Miss (9-3)
- South Carolina (9-3)
- Clemson (10-3)
- BYU (10-2)
- Iowa State (10-3)
- Missouri (9-3)
- Illinois (9-3)
- Syracuse (9-3)
- Army (11-1)
- Colorado (9-3)
- UNLV (10-3)
- Memphis (10-2)
