Overview
- The first 2025 College Football Playoff rankings release airs at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN, with weekly shows through Dec. 2 and the final field announced Dec. 7 at noon ET.
- Under straight seeding, the top four teams in the final rankings earn quarterfinal byes while the five highest-ranked conference champions remain guaranteed entry.
- Early projections widely place Ohio State, Indiana, Texas A&M and Alabama in position for the top-four byes, with undefeated BYU closely watched as its schedule strengthens.
- First-round games are set for Dec. 19–20 at higher-seeded sites, quarterfinals will be played at the Cotton, Orange, Rose and Sugar Bowls on Dec. 31–Jan. 1, semifinals are at the Fiesta and Peach Bowls Jan. 8–9, and the title game is Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium.
- Forecasts adjusted after Week 10 now favor Texas Tech to win the Big 12, Louisville in the ACC and South Florida in the American, and history shows the first rankings are telling after 10 of last year’s initial 12 ultimately made the field.