Michigan won the final four-team College Football Playoff on Monday. A new era is upon us.
12 teams will make the Playoff moving forward, beginning with the 2024/25 college football season. Fans of the sport will be thrilled to know that it means even more football.
This past season ended on Jan. 8. Next season will not end until Jan. 20.
Here is how it works!
Which 12 teams get into the CFP?
Right off of the top, six automatic bids are guaranteed to the highest-ranked conference champions. From there, the six highest-ranked teams remaining will finish out the bracket.
The top-four teams in the country will get a bye in the first round.
Where will the games be held?
The higher-ranked team (lower seed) will have the opportunity to select the host venue during the first round. They may choose to play at their home stadium. They may choose to play at an NFL stadium.
From there, bowl games will be introduced for the Quarterfinal matchups. The Fiesta Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl, Peach Bowl, Sugar Bowl and Cotton Bowl will rotate each year.
Four of them will host the Quarterfinals. Two of them will host the Semifinals.
Host sites will then bid for the national championship.
When will the games be played?
This is where things start to look really different.
The 2024 College Football Playoff begins on Dec. 20 and continues through Jan. 20.
- First round — Dec. 20 & Dec. 21
- Quarterfinals — Dec. 31 & Jan. 1
- Semifinals — Jan. 9 & Jan. 10
- National championship — Jan. 20
The 2025 CFP looks exactly the same, but moved one day back.
There will be so much more football in 2024 and beyond!!!!!!