College Football Playoff format: 12-team bracket, 2025 schedule, dates, byes, first-round games

The expanded College Football Playoff debuts on Sunday as the CFP Committee prepares to unveil the 12-team brackt. This will be the first time viewers see the completed process and it’s sure to come with some controversy. 

The biggest change from the four-team bracket comes down to auto-bids. Previously, winning a championship would be a nice advantage. Now, five conference champions are guaranteed a spot in the CFP, and the top for of them get a first-round bye. Additionally, first round games will take place on college campuses.

With so many changes, we’re pulling back the curtain and explaining how the new 12-team system will work. The 2024-25 College Football Playoff field will be released at 12 p.m. ET on Sunday. Here is how it will be constructed. 

How the 12-team bracket works

Step 1: Rank the top 25

The first step does not change compared to other seasons. The CFP Committee will again rank the top 25 teams in the country. The criteria include strength of schedule, head-to-head competition, comparative outcomes of common opponents and any other relevant factors. This step remains the same in both the four- and 12-team systems. 

Step 2: Seed the teams

When the CFP Rankings are complete, the committee will seed the bracket. They first identify the top four conference champions, which become the top four seeds, no matter where the teams are ranked. 

Then, the CFP Committee will fill seeds 5-12 based on the top remaining teams in the rankings. One of the seeds must go to the fifth-highest-ranked conference champion. If that team is ranked lower than No. 12, it will receive the 12-seed. 

Step 3: Create the bracket

The top four seeds receive byes to the quarterfinal rounds, while teams 5-12 face first round matchups at home stadiums of…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/college-football-playoff-format-12-team-bracket-2025-schedule-dates-byes-first-round-games/

Author : Shehan Jeyarajah

Publish date : 2024-12-08 03:02:00

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