Share
Here’s the official 2025-26 College Football Playoff bracket, as announced on Sunday, Dec. 7. No. 8 Oklahoma hosts No. 9 Alabama at 8 p.m. ET on Friday, Dec. 19 in the first game of the CFP.
Indiana is the No. 1 seed. No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Georgia and No. 4 Texas Tech also have byes into the quarterfinals.
2025-26 College Football Playoff bracket
This bracket uses the CFP selection committee’s final top 25 rankings of the season from Sunday, Dec. 7.
The top 25 ranking does not always match the seed in the playoff, as the five highest-ranked conference champions get in automatically, even if they are ranked behind teams in the top 25 or not ranked in the top 25 at all.
2025-26 College Football Playoff schedule, games
Click or tap here for live updates
First round (Dec. 19-20)
Friday, Dec. 19
Saturday, Dec. 20:
Quarterfinals (Dec. 31-Jan. 1)
Wednesday, Dec. 31
Thursday, Jan. 1
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
College Football Playoff rankings, seeds
The four highest-ranked teams — regardless of how they finish in their conference — receive first round byes into the quarterfinals. These teams are listed in bold. The five highest-ranked conference champions receive automatic bids. All teams in the CFP bracket are in italics.
Here are the latest CFP top 25 rankings.
Indiana: 13-0
Ohio State: 12-1
Georgia: 12-1
Texas Tech: 12-1
Oregon: 11-1
Ole Miss: 11-1
Texas A&M: 11-1
Oklahoma: 10-2
Alabama: 10-3
Miami (Fla.): 10-2
Notre Dame: 10-2
BYU: 11-2
Texas: 9-3
Vanderbilt: 10-2
Utah: 10-2
USC: 9-3
Arizona: 9-3
Michigan: 9-3
Virginia: 10-3
Tulane: 11-2
Houston: 9-3
Georgia Tech: 9-3
Iowa: 8-4
James Madison: 12-1
North Texas: 11-2
There is no re-seeding of the bracket after rounds.
The four quarterfinal games are not played on campus sites like in the first round. The quarterfinals, scheduled on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 — will be played at the Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl. The four highest-ranked teams will be assigned one of these bowls in consideration of historic bowl relationships as well as seeding.
The four quarterfinal winners will then meet in the semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl or the Peach Bowl on Jan. 8 and Jan. 9. If the seeds hold, that means No. 1 would play No. 4 and No. 2 would play No. 3. The two semifinal winners will then play on Monday, Jan. 19 in Miami for the CFP national championship.
2025 Heisman Trophy Finalists: Jeremiyah Love, Fernando Mendoza, Diego Pavia and Julian Sayin named to top four
Jeremiyah Love, Fernando Mendoza, Diego Pavia and Julian Sayin were named the top four finalists for the 2025 Heisman Trophy.
READ MORE
Re-ranking the final 8 FCS playoff teams before the quarterfinals
Eight teams remain in the 2025 FCS playoffs. As the quarterfinals approach, the time is right to re-rank the teams left standing.
READ MORE
College football scores: Top 25 rankings, schedule, results for bowl games
Get college football scores for top 25 games throughout the season here. We’re now in the College Football Playoff.
READ MORE