How new 12-team College Football Playoff works

The College Football Playoff discussion will increase this month, starting with the first CFP rankings reveal on Tuesday.

The new 12-team format of the CFP will increase the interested teams and fan bases in the initial rankings. Tennessee Vols football should be among the top 10 in the first rankings, which are set by the CFP committee.

Tuesday’s rankings reveal is one of six over the next month, including the final reveal that will set the CFP field on Dec. 8.

What else has changed about the 12-team playoff? Let’s go through it:

The 12-team format is new to the 2024 college football season, with five guaranteed spots (ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, SEC champions, plus highest-ranked non P4 conference champion).

The top four ranked conference champions will get a first-round bye, while those seeded Nos. 5-8 will host first-round games in December. The seeds will be laid out via their final CFP rankings when the final rankings are revealed on Dec. 8.

A tip: It’s possible, if not probable, that the top four seeds won’t resemble the same order as the final CFP rankings. For example, if Ohio State is ranked No. 3 in the final rankings but does not win the Big Ten, it can be seeded no higher than fifth.

The formal bracket will look like this:

CFP First Round

Dec. 20 or 21

• No. 9 seed at No. 8 seed, Time TBD
• No. 12 seed at No. 5 seed, Time TBD
• No. 10 seed at No. 7 seed, Time TBD
• No. 11 seed at No. 6 seed, Time TBD

CFP Quarterfinals

Dec. 31 or Jan. 1, 2025

• No. 1 seed (highest-ranked conference champion) vs. No. 8/No. 9 winner, Site and time TBD
• No. 4 seed (fourth highest-ranked conference champion) vs. No. 5/No. 12 winner, Site and time TBD
• No. 2 seed (second highest-ranked conference champion) vs. No. 7/No. 10 winner, Site and time TBD
• No. 3 seed (third highest-ranked conference champion) vs. No. 6/No. 11 winner, Site and time TBD

CFP Semifinals

Jan. 9 or 10, 2025

• No. 1 seed-8/9 winner vs. No. 4 seed-5/12 winner, Site and time TBD
• No. 2 seed-7/10 winner vs. No. 3 seed-6/11 winner, Site and time TBD

CFP National Championship

Jan. 20, 2025

• Semifinal No. 1 winner vs. Semifinal No. 2 winner in Atlanta

• First round games: Dec. 20-21
• Quarterfinal games: Dec. 31-Jan. 1
• Semifinals: Jan. 9-10
• National Championship game: Jan. 20

First round games will be held at campus sites, while the quarterfinals and semifinals will be held at what the college football public knows as the New Year’s Six bowls (Orange, Rose, Sugar, Fiesta, Cotton, Peach). This year, the bowl sites are as follows:

CFP first round sites

• Campus sites, better seed in matchup, Dec. 20-21

CFP quarterfinal sites

• Fiesta Bowl (Glendale, Arizona, Dec. 31)
• Rose Bowl (Pasadena, California, Jan. 1, 2025)
• Sugar Bowl (New Orleans, Jan. 1, 2025)
• Peach Bowl (Atlanta, Jan. 1, 2025)

CFP semifinal sites

• Orange Bowl (Miami, Jan. 9, 2025)
• Cotton Bowl Classic (Arlington, Texas, Jan. 10, 2025)

CFP National Championship Game site

• Atlanta, Georgia (Jan. 20, 2025)

The initial CFP rankings will be revealed on Nov. 5, with rankings reveals coming out weekly each Tuesday until the final rankings come out on Sunday, Sept. 8.

CFP rankings reveals

• Nov. 5
• Nov. 12
• Nov. 19
• Nov. 26
• Dec. 3
• Dec. 8

The College Football Playoff rankings reveal takes place on Tuesday, Nov. 5 on ESPN, with Rece Davis leading the coverage. Streaming options for the game include FUBO, which offers a free trial to new subscribers. 

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