8:42 pm, December 7, 2025
We wrap up the first round of the CFP with a matchup between the Dukes and the Ducks—No. 12 JMU heads to Eugene to face No. 5 Oregon on Dec. 20.
No. 24 James Madison is putting together its best season in program history, finishing 12-1, winning the Sun Belt and securing a playoff spot as the fifth-highest ranked conference champion in just its fourth season as an FBS program. The Dukes face a tough opponent in the first round, though, as they’ll travel over 2,800 miles to take on the No. 5 Oregon Ducks in Eugene, OR. Oregon failed to reach the Big Ten championship game after winning it in 2024, but the Ducks still had an excellent season, finishing 11-1 with their only loss being to the 2025 Big Ten champion, No. 1 Indiana, back in October.
The winner of this game will face No. 4 Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 1.
No. 5 Oregon vs. No. 12 James Madison
🗓️ When: Saturday, Dec. 20 at 7:30 p.m.
📍 Where: Autzen Stadium, Eugene, OR
📺 How to watch: TNT, HBO Max
8:30 pm, December 7, 2025
The 2025 College Football Playoff begins with No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M at Noon on Saturday, Dec. 20. in College Station, TX.
Texas A&M finished the season with an 11-1 record, with its only loss coming at home to in-state rival Texas. Miami finished 10-2 with losses to Louisville and SMU. These teams had two common opponents this season: Notre Dame and Florida. Miami beat Notre Dame, 27-24, in Week 1, while the Aggies beat the Irish, 41-40, in Week 3. Both teams handled Florida at home, with Miami beating the Gators 26-7, and Texas A&M winning 34-17.
The winner will advance to face No. 2 Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 31.
No. 7 Texas A&M vs. No. 10 Miami
🗓️ When: Saturday, Dec. 20 at Noon
📍 Where: Kyle Field, College Station, TX
📺 How to watch: ABC/ESPN
8:25 pm, December 7, 2025
American Conference champion Tulane heads to Oxford for a first-round date with the Rebels, Saturday, Dec. 20 at 3:30 p.m.
These two teams are familiar with one another, having already met in the regular season on Sept. 20. The Rebels dominated the Green Wave in that game, winning 45-10, and holding Tulane to just 282 total yards (104 passing). Ole Miss finished the season 11-1 with its one loss on the road to Georgia, while Tulane finished 11-2, defeating North Texas in the American Conference championship game.
The winner of this game will face No. 3 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1.
No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 11 Tulane
🗓️ When: Saturday, Dec. 20 at 3:30 p.m.
📍 Where: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, Oxford, MS
📺 How to watch: TNT/HBO Max
8:20 pm, December 7, 2025
In the first of two regular-season rematches we’ll see in the first round, No. 9 Alabama heads to Norman to take on No. 8 Oklahoma on Dec. 19.
The Crimson Tide have lost two-straight games against Oklahoma since the Sooners joined the SEC in 2024. This season, Oklahoma edged out a come-from-behind win over the Crimson Tide back on Nov. 15, kicking a late field goal to go up 23-21 in the fourth quarter in Tuscaloosa. Now, the Sooners play host in the rematch, but the stakes are much higher. The winner will move on to face No. 1 Indiana in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1.
No. 8 Oklahoma vs. No. 9 Alabama
🗓️ When: Friday, Dec. 19 at 8 p.m.
📍 Where: Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Norman, OK
📺 How to watch: ABC, ESPN
5:52 pm, December 7, 2025
5:45 pm, December 7, 2025
Below is the complete top-25 from the final CFP rankings:
Playoff teams bolded (seed)
Rank
school
record
previous
1
Indiana (1)
13-0
2
2
Ohio State (2)
12-1
1
3
Georgia (3)
12-1
3
4
Texas Tech (4)
12-1
4
5
Oregon (5)
11-1
5
6
Ole Miss (6)
11-1
6
7
Texas A&M (7)
11-1
7
8
Oklahoma (8)
10-2
8
9
Alabama (9)
10-3
9
10
Miami (Fla.) (10)
10-2
12
11
Notre Dame
10-2
10
12
BYU
11-2
11
13
Texas
9-3
13
14
Vanderbilt
10-2
14
15
Utah
10-2
15
16
Southern Cal.
9-3
16
17
Arizona
9-3
18
18
Michigan
9-3
19
19
Virginia
10-3
17
20
Tulane (11)
11-2
20
21
Houston
9-3
21
22
Georgia Tech
9-3
22
23
Iowa
8-4
23
24
James Madison (12)
12-1
25
25
North Texas
11-2
24
5:27 pm, December 7, 2025
Notre Dame is the first team left out of the 2025 College Football Playoff after getting jumped by No. 10 Miami in the final CFP rankings. No. 12 BYU is the second team out of the 12-team field.
Notre Dame, which finished 11th in the CFP rankings, misses the playoff, while No. 20 Tulane and No. 24 JMU make the CFP as the fourth and fifth highest-ranked conference champions.
5:04 pm, December 7, 2025
The top-four ranked teams earn first-round byes in the 2025 College Football Playoff.
Those four teams are:
Indiana (13-0)
Ohio State (12-1)
Georgia (12-1)
Texas Tech (12-1)
4:06 pm, December 7, 2025
2:34 pm, December 6, 2025
ESPN has announced details about how Sunday’s College Football Playoff selection show will work. Here’s a quick rundown:
The show starts at 12 p.m. on ESPN and will be three hours long
The 12-team CFP bracket will be revealed within the show’s first 30 minutes
Rece Davis will serve as host, with Joey Galloway, Booger McFarland and Greg McElroy alongside
Kirk Herbstreit, Nick Saban and Chris Fowler will also join the show
Heather Dinich will be live at the CFP Selection Committee headquarters
Click or tap here for more details of ESPN’s full slate of CFP coverage on Sunday.
4:13 pm, November 28, 2025
After 10 years with a four-team format, the College Football Playoff expanded to 12 teams last season.
All four home teams won in the first round, when games were played on campus at the higher seed. No. 8 seed Ohio State ended up winning the championship, defeating No. 7 Notre Dame in the title game.
Here’s a complete rundown of the 2024-25 games:
First round (Dec. 20-21)
Quarterfinals (Dec. 31-Jan. 1)
Semifinals (Jan. 9-10)
CFP National Championship
4:07 pm, November 28, 2025
The College Football Playoff selections are on Sunday, Dec. 7. That’s when we’ll get the selection committee’s official 12-team bracket and the final top 25 rankings.
WHEN: 12-3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Dec. 7
TV: ESPN
STREAMING: WatchESPN
3:46 pm, November 28, 2025
This is the second year the College Football Playoff is in a 12-team bracket format after previously having only four teams. In this 12-team era, that means there are automatic qualifiers, byes and home games. Here’s a quick explainer:
The five conference champions ranked highest by the selection committee get in automatically
The remaining seven teams are the next seven highest-ranked schools
The four highest-ranked teams — no matter where they finished in their conferences — will be seeded Nos. 1 through 4 and receive first round byes.
This is new for 2025-26, as last season the four highest-ranked conference champions received the top four seeds and byes.
The teams seeded No. 5-12 will play in the first round, with the higher seeds hosting (No. 12 at No. 5, No. 11 at No. 6, No. 10 at No. 7 and No. 9 at No. 8.)
There will be no re-seeding once the bracket is announced on Dec. 7.
For a deeper look into how it all works, click or tap here.
There are also six in-season rankings shows during the season, with the final rankings show on Dec. 7 the day for the official bracket. Check out the full rankings release schedule here.
3:42 pm, November 28, 2025
Though we won’t know the bracket matchups until Sunday, Dec. 7, we do know the game times for all College Football Playoff games this season. Take a look:
First round (Dec. 19-20) — on campus
Friday, Dec. 19
8 p.m. ET on ABC, ESPN, WatchESPN
Saturday, Dec. 20:
12 p.m. on ABC, ESPN, WatchESPN
3:30 p.m. on TNT, truTV, HBO Max
7:30 p.m. on TNT, truTV, HBO Max
Quarterfinals (Dec. 31-Jan. 1)
Wednesday, Dec. 31
Cotton Bowl (Arlington, Texas) | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN
Thursday, Jan. 1
Orange Bowl (Miami Gardens, Fla.) | 12 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN
Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.) | 4 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN
Sugar Bowl (New Orleans) | 8 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN
Semifinals (Jan. 8-9)
Thursday, Jan. 8
Fiesta Bowl (Glendale, Ariz.) | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN
Friday, Jan. 9
Peach Bowl (Atlanta) | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN
College Football Playoff National Championship Game
Monday, Jan. 19
Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN