College Football HQ

College football bracketology: What the 12-team field looks like after first CFP rankings release of 2024

As the College Football Playoff selection committee reveals their first rankings of a historic 2024 season, we take a look at what the bracket would look like today.
James Parks|
What the College Football Playoff bracket looks like in Week 11
What the College Football Playoff bracket looks like in Week 11 | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In this story:

Ohio State BuckeyesOregon DucksAlabama Crimson TideTexas LonghornsMiami (FL) HurricanesNotre Dame Fighting IrishPenn State Nittany LionsBYU CougarsIndiana HoosiersTennessee VolunteersBoise State Broncos

The first major test for the new College Football Playoff came this week as the selection committee revealed its first top 25 rankings for the 2024 season, including an early projection for what the new 12-team bracket would look like if the playoff started today.

As expected, Oregon was the consensus No. 1 team in the first CFP top 25 rankings, with Ohio State coming in at No. 2, SEC favorite Georgia at No. 3, and undefeated Miami sitting at No. 4.

But those wouldn’t be the highest-ranked four teams that receive a first-round bye in the new College Football Playoff system.

Despite being ranked at No. 2 in the actual team poll, Ohio State is not the presumptive Big Ten champion, meaning the Buckeyes would not be included in the top-four seeds for the bracket.

Oregon is the expected favorite to win the Big Ten title, and thus receive the automatic bid into the playoff, leaving the way for other presumptive conference champions -- Georgia in the SEC, Miami in the ACC, and BYU as the highest-ranked Big 12 team -- to get the other highest seeds.

In the first bracket reveal, BYU, which debuted at No. 9 in the actual rankings, would move into the No. 4 seed position by virtue of theoretically winning its conference championship.

Remember, the bracket is still only a projection at this point in the season, and none of the top-four seeds will become official until teams start winning their respective conference championships and the final decisions are made on Selection Sunday.

In the meantime, here’s what the College Football Playoff would look like if it started today.

College football bracketology: What the playoff looks like in Week 11

First-Round Byes

  1. Oregon
  2. Georgia
  3. Miami
  4. BYU

First-Round Games

No. 9 Indiana at
No. 7 Tennessee

No. 12 Boise State at
No. 5 Ohio State

No. 10 Notre Dame at
No. 7 Penn State

No. 11 Alabama at
No. 6 Texas

Quarterfinals

No. 1 Oregon plays against the winner of the Indiana vs. Tennessee game

No. 2 Georgia plays against the winner of the Notre Dame vs. Penn State game

No. 3 Miami plays against the winner of the Alabama vs. Texas game

No. 4 BYU plays against the winner of the Ohio State vs. Boise State game

More ... College Football Playoff rankings for Week 11

-

More college football from SI: Top 25 Rankings | Schedule | Teams

Follow College Football HQ: Bookmark | Rankings | Picks

Published
James Parks
JAMES PARKS

James Parks is the founder and publisher of College Football HQ. He has covered football for a decade, previously managing several team sites and publishing national content for 247Sports.com for five years. His work has also been published on CBSSports.com. He founded College Football HQ in 2020, and the site joined the Sports Illustrated Fannation Network in 2022 and the On SI network in 2024.

Home/Rankings