Everything you need to know about the College Football Playoff, including the new expanded format, dates and schedule for 2024/25.
What is the College Football Playoff?
The College Football Playoff replaced the Bowl Championship Series (1998-2013) as the system used to determine the annual champion in NCAA football.
College Football Playoff expansion
The College Football Playoff is expanding from four to 12 teams starting in 2024/25.
The playoff field will be made up of of six automatic bids for the six highest-ranked conference champions, and six at-large bids for the next six highest-ranked teams.
The top four seeds will receive a first round bye, with the remaining eight teams competing in the first round of the playoff. In this opening round, the higher-ranked team will host the game.
The winners of the first round games will advance to the quarterfinals, which will be hosted by traditional bowl game sites, rather than a team's home stadium. The semifinals and championship game will be played at neutral sites.
2024/25 College Football Playoff schedule
First round (hosted by higher seed)
Friday, December 20, 2024: One game
Saturday, December 21, 2024: Three games
Quarterfinals
Tuesday, December 31, 2024: Fiesta Bowl
Wednesday, January 1, 2025: Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl, and Sugar Bowl
Semifinals
Thursday, January 9, 2025: Orange Bowl
Friday, January 10, 2025: Cotton Bowl
CFP National Championship
Monday, January 20, 2025: Mercedes Benz Stadium, Atlanta
Where is the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship?
The 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship will be played on Monday, January 20, 2025, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium is the home field of both the NFL's Atlanta Falcons and MLS' Atlanta United FC.
How to watch College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff will be broadcast live on ESPN.
On February 12, 2024, the College Football Playoff and ESPN agreed to a 6-year, $7.8 billion contract to keep the playoff on the network though 2031/32.
College Football Playoff rankings
A 13-member selection committee, made up of athletic directors, former coaches and players and a former college football reporter that serve three-year terms, release their own Top 25 rankings during the second half of the college football season.
Rankings are weighted on record, strength of schedule and head-to-head results, with conference championships factoring in at the very end.
College Football Playoff records
Team records
| Category | Team | Value |
| Championships | Alabama | 3 |
| Appearances | Alabama | 7 |
| Wins | Alabama | 9 |
Player records
All records single-game
| Category | Player | Value | Team | Game |
| Passing yards | Joe Burrow | 493 | LSU | 2019 Peach Bowl vs. Oklahoma |
| Passing touchdowns | Joe Burrow | 7 | LSU | 2019 Peach Bowl vs. Oklahoma |
| Rushing yards | Ezekiel Elliott | 246 | Ohio St. | 2015 National Championship vs. Oregon |
| Receiving yards | Justin Jefferson | 227 | LSU | 2019 Peach Bowl vs. Oklahoma |
| Total touchdowns | Justin Jefferson | 4 | LSU | 2019 Peach Bowl vs. Oklahoma |
| Sony Michel | 4 | Georgia | 2018 Rose Bowl vs. Oklahoma | |
| Ezekiel Elliott | 4 | Ohio St. | 2015 National Championship vs. Oregon |
The Southeastern Conference has dominated the College Football Playoff era. SEC teams have won six championships in the 10 seasons the College Football Playoff has been in place, led by Alabama’s three titles. Georgia won back-to-back championships in 2021 and 2022, and LSU added a title in 2019.
Clemson has also won the national championship twice during this time, and Ohio State won the first College Football Playoff in 2014. Oklahoma has made the most appearances in the College Football Playoff without winning with four, followed by Notre Dame with two.
Oregon and TCU were runners up in their sole appearances, while Florida State, Michigan State, Washington and Cincinnati all lost in the semifinal of their lone College Football Playoff appearance.
College Football Playoff winners
Below is a list of champions, runners-up and semifinal results for the previous nine College Football Playoff competitions.
| Year | Champion | Runner-Up | Score | Semifinals Results |
| 2023-24 | Michigan (15-0) | Washington | 34-13 | Michigan def. Alabama 27-20; Washington def. Texas 37-31 |
| 2022-23 | Georgia (15-0) | TCU | 65-7 | TCU def. Michigan, 51-45; Georgia def. Ohio State, 42-41 |
| 2021-22 | Georgia (14-1) | Alabama | 33-18 | Alabama def. Cincinnati, 27-6; Georgia def. Michigan, 34-11 |
| 2020-21 | Alabama (13-0) | Ohio State | 52-24 | Alabama def. Notre Dame, 31-14; Ohio State def. Clemson, 49-28 |
| 2019-20 | LSU (15-0) | Clemson | 42-25 | LSU def. Oklahoma, 63-28; Clemson def. Ohio State, 29-23 |
| 2018-19 | Clemson (15-0) | Alabama | 44-16 | Alabama def. Oklahoma, 45-34, Clemson def. Notre Dame, 30-3 |
| 2017-18 | Alabama (13-1) | Georgia | 26-23 (OT) | Georgia def. Oklahoma, 54-48 (OT); Alabama def. Clemson, 24-6 |
| 2016-17 | Clemson (14-1) | Alabama | 35-31 | Alabama def. Washington, 24-7; Clemson def. Ohio State, 31-0 |
| 2015-16 | Alabama (14-1) | Clemson | 45-40 | Clemson def. Oklahoma, 37-17; Alabama def. Michigan State, 38-0 |
| 2014-15 | Ohio State (14-1) | Oregon | 42-20 | Oregon def. Florida State, 59-20; Ohio State def. Alabama, 42-35 |
View the full list of odds to win the College Football Playoff here.
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