How does the College Football Playoff work?
It’s a new era for college football starting with the 2024 season, with the College Football Playoff field expanding from four to 12 teams for the first time. But how are those 12 teams chosen, and by whom? And when and where will all of the playoff games be held?
Many people have plenty of questions about the new 12-team playoff format. We want to address as many questions as possible to help everyone understand how things will work this season.
Why the Change?
While this seems like an obvious answer, some people don’t like having so many teams in the CFP bracket, feeling it lessens the impact of regular-season games. For example, one loss used to be almost disqualifying for a team, depending on when it happened and what opponent the loss was to.
But now, with an expanded playoff field, taking a loss, especially early in the season, doesn’t mean a team can see its odds to make college football playoffs disappear. There are two schools of thought on this, and neither is completely correct.
Some people felt the playoff field needed to expand to keep teams worthy of inclusion in the running. The 2023 field was just one such case, with both undefeated Florida State and one-loss Georgia missing out on playoff spots.
The Seminoles’ starting quarterback, Jordan Travis, was injured and out for the season, so many people saw them as not the same team as they’d been when Travis was running the team. This is despite the fact that Florida State hadn’t lost a game after his injury late in the season, including taking the ACC Championship Game against Louisville.
Georgia was the defending national champion but suffered its first loss of the season in the SEC Championship Game to Alabama. That kept the Bulldogs from having a chance for a third straight national title when they were left out of the four-team playoff field.
There was also the case of an independent trying to make the four-team field. Conference championship games give teams an extra chance to beat a top team and make their case to the committee, so it was major Notre Dame football news that the field was expanded to give the Irish, who don’t play a conference schedule, a bit more of a playing field.
The thought is that a 12-team playoff will ensure that every deserving team makes it in, but there will always be an argument. Just look at the 68-team NCAA Tournament field for men’s basketball. There is never a season when someone doesn’t feel left out.
What Teams Make Up The Field?
The 12 teams in the field will be the five conference champions ranked highest by the CFP selection committee, plus the next seven highest-ranked teams. The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded one through four, and each of these four will receive first-round byes.
The fifth conference champion will be seeded where it was ranked among the remaining teams, or 12th if it was ranked outside of the top 12. If a team is ranked in the top four but fails to win its conference championship, it will be seeded beginning at No. 5.
Because of these seeding rules, the final rankings could differ from the seedings.
When Will Rankings Be Released?
So when is the CFP selection show? Just as in previous seasons, the CFP selection committee will give weekly rankings leading up to the selection of the playoff field. These rankings are released weekly beginning on Tuesday, Nov. 5, and going through the final reveal on Sunday, Dec. 8. All rankings are covered on the BetUS college football content posted daily.
The entire College Football Playoff bracket and final rankings will be revealed the day after the last conference championship games are played. The host teams for the first-round games between the bottom eight teams of the field will be set.
When Will The Playoff Games Be Played?
The first-round matchups will be played on Dec. 20 and 21. The higher-seeded school will host at either an on-campus venue or another site designated by the higher seed. No. 5 will host No. 12, No. 6 will host No. 11, No. 7 will host No. 10, and No. 8 will host No. 9.
The four conference champions will face the first-round winners based on the original seedings for the college football playoff bracket, which will be played at bowl games. For the 2024 season, these quarterfinal bowl games are the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, the Rose Bowl and the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
The quarterfinal bowl games will be played on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1, 2025.
The semifinals will match the quarterfinal winners in a pair of bowl games on Jan. 9 and 10. For the 2024 season, these bowl games are the Capital One Orange Bowl and the Goodyear Cotton Bowl.
The national championship game is scheduled for Jan. 20 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Who Is On The College Football Playoff Committee?
There are 13 CFP committee members who weigh the criteria and rank the 12 teams that will make this season’s playoff.
For the 2024 season, these are the 13 members and how long they’re slated to be on the committee:
- Mike Riley, former coach at Oregon State and Nebraska (February 2027)
- Randall McDaniel, former player at Arizona State (February 2027)
- Gary Pinkel, former coach at Toledo and Missouri (February 2027)
- Mack Rhoades, current athletic director at Baylor (February 2027)
- Hunter Yurachek, current athletic director at Arkansas (February 2027)
- Carla Williams, current athletic director at Virginia (February 2027)
- Chris Ault, current athletic director at Nevada (February 2026)
- Chet Gladchuk, current athletic director at Navy (February 2025)
- Jim Grobe, former coach at Ohio, Wake Forest and Baylor (February 2025)
- Warde Manuel, current athletic director at Michigan (February 2025)
- David Sayler, current athletic director at Miami (Ohio) (February 2026)
- Will Shields, former player at Nebraska (February 2025)
- Kelly Whiteside, former college football reporter (February 2025)
Committee members serve three-year terms, though the term may be extended if a member serves as chair in what would have been their final year or if other circumstances warrant it.
