The College Football Playoff rankings are here.
Follow live updates from The Associated Press on the playoff bracket, with analysis and Top 25 voter answers to fan questions, all in one place. Here is the latest, starting with the College Football Playoff bracket:
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1. Indiana 2. Ohio State 3. Georgia 4. Texas Tech 5. Oregon 6. Ole Miss 7. Texas A&M 8. Oklahoma 9. Alabama 10. Miami 11. Tulane 12. James Madison
How do the AP Top 25 and CFP rankings compare?
By MAURA CAREY
The CFP and AP Top 25 agree on eight of the top 12 teams: Indiana (1), Texas Tech (4), Oregon (5), Ole Miss (6), Texas A&M (7), Oklahoma (8), Miami (10) and BYU (12).
AP Top 25 voters ranked Georgia at No. 2 and Ohio State at No. 3, while the CFP committee did the opposite.
Alabama ranked No. 11 in the AP Top 25 and would have been the first team out of the playoff picture, which would have helped Notre Dame secure a spot at No. 9. The College Football Playoff committee kept Alabama at No. 9, leaving Notre Dame as the first team out of the playoff.
CFP by conferences
By DAVE ZELIO
Conference bragging rights in the College Football Playoff belong to the Southeastern Conference. It wasn’t even close, though the ultimate flex will be winning the national championship on Jan. 19.
The breakdown (by CFP rankings):
SEC (5 teams) No. 3. Georgia No. 6. Ole Miss No. 7. Texas A&M No. 8. Oklahoma No. 9. Alabama
Big Ten (3): No. 1. Indiana No. 2. Ohio State No. 5. Oregon
Big 12 (1): No. 4. Texas Tech
ACC (1): No. 10. Miami
American (1): No. 11. Tulane
Sun Belt (1): No. 12. James Madison
Potential rematches are limited
By MAURA CAREY
The first round of the College Football Playoff offers two rematches.
Oklahoma will face Alabama and Tulane will take on Ole Miss, each for the second time this season. Oklahoma and Ole Miss were victors in those earlier matchups.
If Ole Miss beats Tulane again, the quarterfinals would mark the second encounter between the Rebels and the Georgia Bulldogs this season. Georgia came out on top with a 43-35 win in October.
How did James Madison make it?
By SCOTT HAMILTON
It’s a great question.
The CFP’s format mandates the five highest-ranked conference champs. Indiana, Georgia and Texas Tech held up their ends of the bargain in the P4.
Duke won the ACC, but with five losses was ranked behind both James Madison and Tulane. Each is a G5 conference champ, though conference champs, nonetheless. Only one would’ve gotten in, however, had Virginia won.
The Cavaliers were 17th going into the weekend — ahead of then-No. 20 Tulane and then-No. 25 James Madison. You have to wonder if that stipulation re: conference champs is gonna be massaged or erased?
Scott Hamilton, a longtime sports columnist for The Charleston Post and Courier, has been an AP Top 25 voter for eight years. You can follow him on X: @scotthamiltonpc.
JMU’s trip to the CFP is historic in more ways than one
By MAURA CAREY
James Madison’s trip to the CFP accounts for several firsts. It marks the first time the Dukes made the College Football Playoff, and it will also be the first time James Madison and Oregon meet in football.
JMU and Oregon will face off at 7:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 20. The winner will meet Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl on Jan 1.
Why is Bama in but not Notre Dame?
By SCOTT HAMILTON
I hear ya.
It’s definitely going to paint the CFP into a corner with regards to a few things — including how to weigh simply making a conference title game. All losses aren’t created equal — that was evident when Notre Dame started off this season 0-2, yet remained ranked.
But that needs to be clearly defined and written out.
Tulane heads to Oxford
By MAURA CAREY
Tulane punched its playoff ticket with a 34-21 American Conference championship win against North Texas on Friday night.
The Green Wave earned the No. 11 seed in the College Football Playoff as a result and will face No. 6 Ole Miss at 3:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 20. The two last met in September, when Ole Miss cruised to a dominant 45-10 victory.
The outing will mark the Rebels’ first without head coach Lane Kiffin. The winner will meet No. 3 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.
Texas A&M vs. Miami up next
Three first-round games are set for Dec. 20, starting with Texas A&M vs. Miami at noon ET. The matchup marks the first time the two teams have met since 2023 and only the sixth meeting overall.
Miami won the last contest, beating Texas A&M 48-33. The Aggies and Hurricanes were the only two teams to knock off Notre Dame this year. Miami beat the Irish in Week 1 and the Aggies delivered an overtime victory one week later.
The winner will improve to the Cotton Bowl and meet No. 2 Ohio State on Dec. 31.
Alabama and Oklahoma will take the field first
No. 8 Oklahoma will host No. 9 Alabama in Norman to kick off the College Football Playoff at 8 p.m. ET on Dec. 19.
Oklahoma got the best of Alabama 23-21 in mid-November in Tuscaloosa. The Sooners had a strong defensive performance, notching 17 points off three turnovers, one of which was a 87-yard pick-six.
The rematch will be streamed on ESPN and ABC, and the winner will travel to face No. 1 Indiana in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1.
BYU and Duke are left out
BYU was the second team out of the CFP rankings after Notre Dame following a 34-7 loss in the Big 12 championship game.
It marked the Cougars’ second loss to Texas Tech this season and solidified the Big 12 as a one-bid league. Texas Tech represents the conference at No. 4.
Duke’s ACC championship game appearance complicated the playoff picture and opened the door for another conference winner. Despite an impressive overtime win in the championship, the Blue Devils’ five losses this season prevented them from real CFP consideration.
American Conference champion Tulane and Sun Belt champion James Madison were the fourth and fifth highest-ranked conference winners and clinched the No. 11 and No. 12 seeds in the bracket as a result.
Notre Dame is the first team out
The Alabama, Miami, Notre Dame debate was settled, and the reigning runners-up Irish fell just short of the 12-team bracket.
Miami leapt over Notre Dame in the rankings despite both teams having the week off. The results are likely due to the Week 1 head-to-head win by Miami.
Alabama avoided being penalized for its 28-7 SEC championship game loss and earned the No. 9 seed in the bracket.
Big 12 fines Cyclones and Wildcats $500K each for passing up bowl bids
By ERIC OLSON
The Big 12 Conference announced Sunday it would fine Iowa State and Kansas State $500,000 each for opting out of post-season bowl games.
Both schools are going through coaching transitions, with Matt Campbell leaving Iowa State for Penn State and Chris Klieman announcing his retirement.
The conference said that while it acknowledges the difficult timing around coaching changes, the Big 12 is responsible for fulfilling its contractual obligations to its bowl partners.
Iowa State announced its players voted to not play in a bowl because the team doesn’t have healthy players to safely practice and play. ISU did not mention the coaching change from Campbell to Jimmy Rogers in its statement.
K-State athletic director Gene Taylor said he had conversations with players and Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark before deciding to decline a bowl bid.
First round is set
By MAURA CAREY
Oregon (5), Ole Miss (6), Texas A&M (7) and Oklahoma (8) will each be playing at home after earning spots 5-8 in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Texas A&M will host No. 10 Miami. Oklahoma will welcome No. 9 Alabama for a rematch. Ole Miss takes American Conference-winner Tulane (11). Lastly, No. 12 James Madison, fresh off a Sun Belt championship win, will head to Eugene to take on No. 5 Oregon.
Top four, first-round bye’s solidified
As expected, the Hoosiers earned the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye after beating Ohio State in the Big Ten championship game on Saturday.
Despite the loss, the committee opted to rank Ohio State No. 2 ahead of SEC champion Georgia. The Bulldogs earned their second straight first-round bye and top four ranking in the CFP bracket, coming in at No. 3.
Texas Tech rounded out the top four after beating BYU on Saturday. All four teams get the luxury of having the first round off and will resume game action in the quarterfinals.
Alabama would be out, James Madison in if CFP bracket echoes AP Top 25
By ERIC OLSON
Alabama would be on the outside looking if the College Football Playoff selection committee’s final rankings echo the new AP Top 25 poll. So would BYU, Vanderbilt and Texas.
And for the first time, there would be two Group of Five schools in the playoff, with James Madison joining Tulane on the bracket.
Here’s how the CFP bracket would look if it were based on the AP poll:
— No. 9 seed Notre Dame at No. 8 seed Oklahoma. Winner vs. No. 1 Indiana.
— No. 12 seed James Madison at No. 5 Oregon. Winner vs. No. 4 Texas Tech.
— No. 10 seed Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M. Winner vs. No. 2 Georgia.
— No. 11 seed Tulane at No. 6 Mississippi. Winner vs. No. 3 Ohio State.
Top four teams in AP poll should land top CFP seeds
The Associated Press Top 25 is out, with Indiana taking the No. 1 spot for the first time in program history. Now what will the final College Football Playoff rankings look like? We’ll find out at noon Eastern.
The order of teams in the AP poll and CFP rankings have been similar since the playoff selection committee started putting out its top 25 in November.
Indiana, Georgia, Ohio State and Texas Tech are the top four teams in the new AP poll. They were also the top four in last week’s CFP rankings and it’s a good bet the bracket will award those teams top-four seeds and first-round byes. It’s possible the committee would put Ohio State second and Georgia third based on the narrow margin of victory in the Big Ten title game.
Mississippi, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Notre Dame and Miami are teams 6 through 10 in the AP poll. AP voters moved Miami up two spots — ahead of Alabama and BYU. The Hurricanes will be hoping the committee follows suit, which would grant them an at-large bid.
1. Indiana
2. Georgia
3. Ohio State
4. Texas Tech
5. Oregon
6. Ole Miss
7. Texas A&M
8. Oklahoma
9. Notre Dame
10. Miami (Fla.)
11. Alabama
12. BYU
13. Vanderbilt
14. Texas
15. Utah
16. USC
17. Tulane
18. Michigan
19. James Madison
20. Virginia
21. Arizona
22. Navy
23. North Texas
24. Georgia Tech
25. Missouri
Mighty Hoosiers
By DAVE ZELIO
Indiana’s Tyrique Tucker and Drew Evans celebrate after the Big Ten championship NCAA college football game against Ohio State in Indianapolis, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)
One team that doesn’t have to sweat much today about the College Football Playoff announcement: Indiana.
At 13-0, the Hoosiers are the last unbeaten team in major college football after beating Ohio State in a thriller for their first outright championship since 1945. By beating the Buckeyes, Indiana ended the nation’s longest active winning streak at 16 and the Big Ten’s longest winning streak in a series between two teams.
In between, the Hoosiers shed the label of FBS’ losing-est program, too.
Most expect Indiana to grab AP’s No. 1 ranking and get the No. 1 CFP seed later today.
What about the ACC?
Duke tight end Jeremiah Hasley (85) scores a touchdown against Virginia in overtime of the Atlantic Coast Conference championship NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman)
Duke’s overtime win against No. 16 Virginia in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game was something of a doomsday scenario for the league when it comes to the College Football Playoff.
The five-loss Blue Devils were unranked in the CFP, which raises the potential that the ACC could get shut out of the 12-team playoff later today. Sun Belt champion James Madison could secure the last automatic bid that goes to the five highest-ranked conference champions; three of those –- the Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC -– are locks and American champ Tulane is considered the fourth.
ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips says his league deserves two bids: one for No. 12 Miami as an at-large team and one for Saturday’s title-game winner.
Nailbiter night
Alabama, Notre Dame and Miami fans probably had something of a sleepless night ahead of the College Football Playoff bracket announcement.
Last week’s CFP rankings moved Alabama up a spot, raising the idea that the Crimson Tide have a cushion to make the bracket even if they lost to Georgia in the SEC championship game, which they did.
Notre Dame has won 10 straight games convincingly since starting 0-2, but had a lighter schedule than both Alabama and Miami, which handed the Fighting Irish one of those losses. Altogether those factors complicate the bottom of the playoff bracket.
Bracket Day!
It’s one of the biggest days on the calendar in college sports: The College Football Playoff will release its second 12-team bracket to kick off the postseason chase for the national championship.
We will kick things off soon with the final regular-season AP Top 25 football poll, so keep an eye for changes there that could foreshadow what you see in the CFP bracket.
There are eight teams that can feel pretty good about making the CFP, from Indiana to Ohio State and Georgia to Texas Tech and Ole Miss.
The final four slots are something else entirely. There is a lot of uncertainty on those and we will update you throughout the bracket release.
Who votes in the poll, and how does it work?
No organization has been ranking teams and naming a major college football national champion longer than The Associated Press, since 1936.
AP employees don’t vote themselves, but they do choose the voters. AP Top 25 voters comprise around 60 writers and broadcasters who cover college football for AP members and other select outlets. The goal is to have every state with a Football Bowl Subdivision school represented by at least one voter.
There is a 1-to-25 point system, with a team voted No. 1 receiving 25 points down to 1 point for a 25th-place vote. After that, it’s simple: The poll lists the teams with the most points from 1 to 25, and others receiving votes are also noted.
Voting is done online, and the tabulation is automated.