The 2024 College Football Playoff picture just got a lot clearer – and a bit more controversial. With the release of the CFP committee’s latest top 25 rankings, we now know which teams have earned coveted first-round byes and who will be battling it out in the first round matchups of the expanded 12-team bracket.
The biggest shake-up came at the top, where Boise State leapfrogged BYU to snag the final first-round bye. The Broncos, leaders of the Pac-12, moved up to #4 while the Big 12’s Cougars dropped to #12.
First-Round Byes Reward Top 4
Under the new 12-team format, the top four teams earn a bye to the quarterfinals. This year, those coveted spots belong to:
- #1 Oregon Ducks
- #2 Texas Longhorns
- #3 Miami Hurricanes
- #4 Boise State Broncos
The Ducks remain the consensus top team, but the Broncos’ rise shows the committee’s respect for their undefeated record against a solid Pac-12 slate.
First-Round Matchups Set for Campus Sites
While the top four teams get a break, the rest of the bracket features some tantalizing first-round clashes to be played at campus sites:
- #9 Alabama at #8 Notre Dame (winner faces #1 Oregon)
- #12 BYU at #5 Ohio State (winner faces #4 Boise State)
- #11 Georgia at #6 Penn State (winner faces #3 Miami)
- #10 Ole Miss at #7 Indiana (winner faces #2 Texas)
Traditional powers like Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia find themselves hitting the road as lower seeds – a major departure from the 4-team era. The Fighting Irish and coach Marcus Freeman will host the Tide at Notre Dame Stadium in perhaps the most intriguing first-round tilt.
Obviously, we’re disappointed to be outside the top eight, but we’re embracing the chance to go out and earn it against a great Notre Dame team.
–Alabama head coach Nick Saban
New Top 25 Offers Playoff Pecking Order
Beyond the bracket, the committee’s complete top 25 gives a clearer picture of where teams stand with just two rankings releases to go:
- Oregon
- Ohio State
- Texas
- Penn State
- Indiana
- Notre Dame
- Alabama
- Miami
- Mississippi
- Georgia
- Tennessee
- Boise State
- SMU
- BYU
- Texas A&M
- Colorado
- Clemson
- South Carolina
- Army
- Tulane
- Arizona State
- Iowa State
- Missouri
- UNLV
- Illinois
Teams like SMU, Army, Tulane will likely need to win out and get some help to crack the top 12 by Selection Sunday. But for now, the debate and anticipation will only grow as the bracket begins to take shape. The road to the 2024 national championship just got a lot more interesting.
