Notre Dame and Texas A&M are among the postseason hopefuls awaiting a committee call. Michael Reaves / Getty Images
A season marked by upheaval, uncertainty and maximum-capacity theater is nearing its final chapter. With conference championship Saturday upon us, college football is now almost ready to fill its bracket with ink.
Once all nine conference title games are in the books, eyes and ears will turn to a dozen voters behind one closed door. It’s like “12 Angry Men,” if Henry Fonda urged his fellow jurors to reconsider strength of schedule. When the College Football Playoff bracket is revealed during the three-hour selection show Sunday, expect controversy, confusing answers and calls for an expanded format to follow.
How to watch the 2025 CFP selection show
Here is the full committee behind these final rankings. Members are arranged alphabetically by last name:
- Chris Ault – former Nevada head coach and athletic director
- Troy Dannen – current athletic director at Nebraska
- Mark Dantonio – former head coach at Cincinnati and Michigan State
- Mark Harlan – current athletic director at Utah
- Jeff Long – former athletic director at Kansas, Arkansas, Pittsburgh and Eastern Kentucky
- Ivan Maisel – longtime sportswriter and Hall of Fame member of the Football Writers Association of America
- Chris Massaro – current athletic director at Middle Tennessee State
- Mike Riley – former head coach at Oregon State and Nebraska
- David Sayler – current athletic director at Miami (Ohio)
- Wesley Walls – former Ole Miss tight end enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame
- Carla Williams – current athletic director at Virginia
- Hunter Yurachek – current athletic director at Arkansas
This is the second year of the 12-team postseason format. The five highest-ranked conference champions are all guaranteed a bid, with seven at-large spots filled out by the rest of the rankings. Last year’s jumbo trial run didn’t yield any opening upsets. However, all four lower seeds won in the following round — No. 8 Ohio State upset first-ranked Oregon en route to its national title charge.
The committee’s top four teams each earn a first-round bye in the bracket. That round plays out as home games for the higher seeds: No. 12 at No. 5, No. 11 at No. 6, No. 10 at No. 7, No. 9 at No. 8. Those winners advance to the neutral-site quarterfinals, which are at the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Eve and the Orange, Rose and Sugar Bowls on New Year’s Day. There is no reseeding here — No. 1 awaits the winner of the 8-versus-9 matchup, even if upsets occur and lower seeds prevail.
The last four standing will settle up at the Fiesta Bowl (Thursday, Jan. 8) and the Peach Bowl (Friday, Jan. 9). The national championship game is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
Updated national championship odds
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