When are College Football Playoff rankings released? What to know
The bracket for the first 12-team College Football Playoff will officially begin to take shape soon with the release of the first top 25 rankings. This year's field has been expanded, which means there's plenty of sorting out still to be done and lots of teams that still have a shot at a national championship.
Finding out who's No. 1 will be intriguing enough, but how the CFP selection committee initially ranks potential at-large teams is just as important now that first-round playoff action will be played at campus sites.
The CFP is releasing its first batch of top 25 rankings following Week 10 college football action this weekend. Here's everything you need to know about how and when to watch ESPN's rankings reveal show and the format for this year's expanded College Football Playoff.
When do College Football Playoff rankings come out?
The first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2024 season will be released Tuesday, Nov. 5. A new top 25 ranking is then released by the CFP selection committee every Tuesday through Dec. 3. There is a CFP selection show on Dec. 8 to announce the 12-team playoff field.
What time is CFP rankings?
The College Football Playoff rankings are released each week through a CFP rankings show broadcasted by ESPN beginning at 7 p.m. ET every Tuesday, from Nov. 5 through Dec. 3.
How to watch CFP rankings reveal
The College Football Playoff rankings show will air on ESPN, with the broadcast starting at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Fans can also stream the show on Fubo, which is a offering a free trial.
Watch the CFP rankings show with Fubo
How many teams in College Football Playoff 2024?
There are 12 teams in the College Football Playoff for the first time this season, after college football introduced the CFP in 2014 with a four-team format. The expansion to 12 teams is set in place for the 2024 and 2025 college football seasons. Leaders within the sport have not agreed to the framework of the playoff beyond that at this point.
How does College Football Playoff format work?
The 12 participating teams in the College Football Playoff bracket will be the five conference champions ranked highest by the CFP selection committee, and the next seven highest-ranked teams.
The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded one through four and receive a first-round bye. The fifth conference champion will be seeded where it was ranked or at No. 12 if it is outside the top 12 in the CFP rankings. Non-conference champions ranked in the top four will be seeded beginning at No. 5.
"Because of this," the CFP warns on its website, "the seeding, 1 through 12, could look different than the final rankings."
For the first round, the higher-ranked team in each pairing (5 vs. 12, 6 vs. 11, 7 vs. 10, 8 vs. 9) will serve as host on campus. The winners advance to the quarterfinals and match up with the corresponding top-four conference champion based on seeding. Quarterfinal games will played at the Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. The semifinals – played at the Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl Classic – will take place Jan. 9-10.
The two semifinal winners will play for the national championship Jan. 20 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. Paste BN Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.