With the holidays just around the corner, it’s time for the first round of the College Football Playoff (CFP). And just like the Christmas gifts you are about to receive from your distant relatives, this year’s new expanded field is sure to be unpredictable and unforgettable in equal measure.
How to watch the CFP
The College Football Playoff is being broadcast across a variety of channels, including ESPN, ABC and TNT/Max. You can access the full schedule and list of broadcasters here.
How did the 12 teams get selected?
Previously, the CFP ran for just two rounds with four teams involved, but this year marks the first season with an expanded field, allowing more teams to compete for the national championship.
In this new format, the five highest-ranked conference champions and the next seven highest-ranked teams filled the 12 spots in the bracket. There is no limit to how many teams from one conference can qualify.
“It’s awesome to be a part of the first expanded playoff. It’s a unique opportunity to go on the road and play at a great venue. It is a huge challenge, but they all are when you get to this point in the season,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said in a news conference Monday.
“This is very different. Very, very different – because, again, it’s a quick turnaround. It’s basically an open date. You’re right into it during finals, and it’s a road game. It’s a true road game,” Swinney added.
The final CFP rankings do not necessarily reflect the seeding of the 12 teams in the tournament. The top four conference champions – Oregon, Georgia, Boise State and Arizona State – got a first-round bye into the quarterfinal round.
The 12 teams can now look forward to a first round game on Friday or Saturday at the home stadiums of the highest seeds.
Who are the 12 teams in the CFP?
The teams and their seeds in the expanded College Football Playoff are:
No. 1: Oregon Ducks
No. 2: Georgia Bulldogs
No. 3: Boise State Broncos
No. 4: Arizona State Sun Devils
No. 5: Texas Longhorns
No. 6: Penn State Nittany Lions
No. 7: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
No. 8: Ohio State Buckeyes
No. 9: Tennessee Volunteers
No. 10: Indiana Hoosiers
No. 11: Southern Methodist University Mustangs
No. 12: Clemson Tigers
What happens next?
The top four seeds that earned a first round bye are Big Ten champion Oregon, SEC champion Georgia, Mountain West champion Boise State and Big 12 champion Arizona State. This means they get to rest and recover for a couple of weeks before their quarterfinal matchups.
So far, we have the following schedule for the first round: No. 7 seed Notre Dame hosting No. 10 seed Indiana at 8 p.m. ET on Friday No. 6 seed Penn State hosting No. 11 seed SMU at noon ET on Saturday, No. 5 seed Texas hosting No. 12 seed Clemson at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday and No. 8 seed Ohio State hosting No. 9 seed Tennessee at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday.
“We’re gonna need this place rocking on Saturday,” Penn State head coach James Franklin said of Happy Valley at a news conference Monday.
“I think every program in the country was battling to either have a bye week in the playoffs to start the playoffs or a home game and we were able to accomplish one of those two, so (we’re) excited about the opportunity.”
The quarterfinals kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET on New Year’s Eve at the Fiesta Bowl, where Boise State will take on the winner of Penn State v SMU.
To ring in the New Year, Arizona State will take on either Texas or Clemson at the Peach Bowl at 1 p.m. ET, while No. 1 seed Oregon will take on the winner of Ohio State and Tennessee at the Rose Bowl at 5 p.m. ET, and Georgia will face off against the winner of Notre Dame vs Indiana at the Sugar Bowl at 8:45 p.m. ET.
The semifinals will take place on January 9 and 10 with the national championship taking place in Atlanta at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 20 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
What can we expect?
With a new format and more rounds, this year’s CFP will provide even more possibilities, close matchups, twists, turns – and even historical firsts.
Oregon is looking to make history and win its first ever national championship after twice finishing runner-up in 2010 and 2014. More to come on that, once we make it to the quarterfinals.
So far, the teams who are due to come up against those with a home field advantage have been anticipating how hard the games might be.
“We’ll do the best we can, you know. We went indoors and cranked up the noise for half of practice for the offense and you do the best you can, you know,” SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee said ahead of his team taking on Penn State away at Beaver Stadium.
“You just got to get there, you’ve got to adjust to it and go compete. So, we’re doing all the normal things you do to try to prepare, but obviously, it’s a huge home field advantage and that’s why they earned the right to be at home,” Lashlee added.
Still, hosting at home doesn’t always guarantee success – Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman has said that, in this case, “fear is a motivator.”
“I mean I would be lying if I say I don’t think about that loss (to Northern Illinois) or being upset. Fear is a motivator, and it is what it is, a lot of people are motivated by fear. And there’s times that I have to remind myself what’s the result of not preparing the right way,” he said Sunday at a press conference.
Meanwhile, in the way of personal vendettas, Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty may have missed out on this year’s Heisman Trophy – awarded to the most outstanding player in college football – but he will surely be looking to make a mark in CFP.
CNN’s Issy Ronald and Kyle Feldscher contributed reporting.
