College Football Playoff bracket, based on the current committee rankings

The 2024-25 college football season is the first time we'll have a 12-team playoff format. During the season, the selection committee ranks the top 25 teams and then makes the bracket based on their ranking.

Here's how that bracket would look, using ONLY the committee's latest top 25 rankings (revealed Dec. 3). This is not a projected look at how the final bracket could look — only how the bracket looks now using the committee's own rankings.

2024-25 College Football Playoff bracket

This bracket uses the committee's top 25 rankings on Tuesday, Dec. 3. It's important to note that the top 25 ranking does not always match the seed in the playoff, as the four highest-ranked conference champions receive the top four seeds and byes, no matter where those four teams rank in the top 25. The fifth-highest-ranked conference champion is also in automatically, though that team will not get a bye.

You can see how those numbers — the seed and the CFP ranking — differ below. The four teams with byes are in bold:

1. Oregon — highest-ranked conference champion (Big Ten) and seeded No. 1
2. Texas — second-highest-ranked conference champion (SEC) and seeded No. 2
3. Penn State — at-large pick (second team in the Big Ten), seeded No. 5
4. Notre Dame — at-large pick (independent), seeded No. 6
5. Georgia — at-large pick (second team from the SEC), seeded No. 7
6. Ohio State — at-large pick (third team from the Big Ten), seeded No. 8
7. Tennessee — at-large pick (third team from the SEC), seeded No. 9
8. SMU — third-highest-ranked conference champion (ACC), seeded No. 3
9. Indiana — at-large pick (fourth team from the Big Ten), seeded No. 10
10. Boise State — fourth-highest-ranked conference champion (Mountain West) and seeded No. 4
11. Alabama — at-large pick (fourth team from the SEC), seeded No. 11
12. Miami (Fla.) — first team out of the CFP
13. Ole Miss — second team out of the CFP
14. South Carolina — third team out of the CFP
15. Arizona State — fifth-highest-ranked conference champion (Big 12) and seeded No. 12

Boise State, which has lost to only top-ranked Oregon, is the fourth-highest-ranked conference champion and thus would receive a bye into the quarterfinals despite ranking No. 10. Though Arizona State is ranked only No. 15, the Sun Devils are in the College Football Playoff bracket ahead of No. 12 Miami (Fla.), No. 13 Ole Miss and No. 14 South Carolina because they are in as the last automatic qualifier — the fifth-highest-ranked conference champ.

The final CFP top 25 rankings will be out on Sunday, Dec 8.

College Football Playoff bracket matchups

With the four highest-ranked conference champions receiving the top four seeds and thus byes, the remaining eight teams in the bracket meet in the first round. Here are those games, played a campus sites on Dec. 20 or Dec. 21:

• (12 seed) Arizona State at (5) Penn State — winner plays (4) Boise State in the quarterfinals
• (11) Alabama at (6) Notre Dame — winner plays (3) SMU in the quarterfinals
• (10) Indiana at (7) Georgia — winner plays (2) Texas in the quarterfinals
• (9) Tennessee at (8) Ohio State — winner plays (1) Oregon in the quarterfinals

There is no re-seeding once the official bracket is revealed on Sunday, Dec. 8.

The four quarterfinal games are not played at the campus sites. Instead, these four games — scheduled on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 — will be played at the Fiesta Bowl, Rose Bowl, Peach Bowl and Sugar Bowl. The four highest-ranked conference champions will be assigned one of these bowls in consideration of historic bowl relationships as well as seeding.

The four quarterfinal winners will then meet in the semifinals at either the Orange Bowl or the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 9 and Jan. 10. If the seeds hold, that means (1) would meet (4) and (2) would play (3). The two semifinal winners will then play on Jan. 20 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta for the national championship.