The College Football Playoffs selection committee unveiled the 12-team playoff bracket on Sunday morning following an exciting weekend of college football conference titles.
There was still a lot of mystery, even if the results from the previous weekend provided numerous hints about how the bracket and pairings might turn out. The bracket has been made public, but ESPN’s selection program is still in progress.
No. 1 Oregon, No. 2 Georgia, No. 3 Boise State, and No. 4 Arizona State are the top four playoff seeds. The first-round byes to the quarterfinals will go to those four teams, who are all conference winners.
The matches in the first round will be:
— Texas, ranked fifth, takes on Clemson, ranked twelve, on Saturday, December 21 at 1 p.m. PT on TNT and MAX.
— On Saturday, December 21, at 9 a.m. PT, Penn State, the sixth seed, will play SMU, the eleventh seed, on TNT and MAX.
— Notre Dame, the seventh seed, takes on Indiana, the tenth seed, at 5 p.m. PT on Friday, December 20 on ESPN/ABC.
— Ohio State, the eighth seed, plays Tennessee, the ninth seed, at 5 p.m. PT on Saturday, December 21 on ESPN/ABC.
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Miami is the next team eliminated from the playoffs, after Alabama.
The Buckeyes will take on Tennessee (10-2) at No. 9, while Ohio State (10-2) is the No. 8 seed. The winner will travel to the Rose Bowl on January 1 to play Oregon in the quarterfinals.
Notre Dame (11-1) is the seventh seed, and the Fighting Irish will take against Indiana (11-1) as the tenth seed. The winner will face Georgia on January 1 at the Sugar Bowl in the quarterfinals.
The Nittany Lions will play SMU (11-2), the No. 11 seed, while Penn State (11-2) is the No. 6 seed. At the Fiesta Bowl on December 31, the victor will face Boise State in the quarterfinals.
The Longhorns will take against No. 12 seed Clemson (10-3), while Texas (11-2) is the No. 5 seed. The winner will go to the Peach Bowl on January 1 to play Arizona State in the quarterfinals.
As the fifth-ranked team to win its conference title, Clemson enters the playoffs as the 12th team, ranked 16th by the selection committee.
At last, the bracket is being revealed. At 13-0, Oregon is the top seed. No. 2 seed Georgia (11-2), No. 3 seed Boise State (12-1), ranked ninth, and No. 4 seed Arizona State (11-2), rated 12th, also received first-round byes, joining the Ducks.
The parameters of the 12-team playoff are discussed in the show.
ESPN is cutting to different reporters across the nation before unveiling the bracket, but the selection show has already started.
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Here is what we know and believe we know before the show starts.
OUR KNOWLEDGE
The top five conference winners and the next seven highest-ranked teams will make up the 12 teams in the College Football Playoff.
The top four conference winners determined by the selection committee will receive seeds 1-4 in the bracket and advance to the playoff quarterfinals via first-round byes. Based on their rating, the remaining eight teams—including the lowest-ranked of the five conference winners—will be given seeds 5–12.
The Oregon Ducks will almost certainly receive a first-round bye and be the top seed. The victor of the first-round contest between the No. 8 and No. 9 seeds would face the Ducks in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day as the Big Ten champions.
By winning their conference titles, Georgia, Boise State, Arizona State, and Clemson have all received automatic invitations to the playoffs. However, only three of those four will receive a first-round bye, joining Oregon.
The No. 5 seed will host the No. 12 seed, the No. 6 will host the No. 11, the No. 7 will host the No. 10, and the No. 8 will host the No. 9. The first-round matches will take place on campus on December 20 and 21.
The teams who won byes will then play the first-round winners in the quarterfinals. On December 31, the Fiesta Bowl will take place, and on January 1, the Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl, and Sugar Bowl will follow.
The victors of the quarterfinals will move on to the semifinals, which will take place at the Cotton Bowl on January 10 and the Orange Bowl on January 9.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta will host the national championship game on January 20th, where the semifinal winners will square off.
WHAT WE CONSIDER TO BE KNOWN
Big Ten champion Oregon (13-0), SEC champion Georgia (11-2), Mountain West champion Boise State (12-1) and Big 12 champion Arizona State (11-2) are probably the top four seeds. Clemson (10-3) the ACC champion is probably going to be seeded 11th or 12th.
Texas, Penn State, Notre Dame, and either Ohio State or Tennessee will probably host in the first round.
Ohio State or Tennessee will probably be the first-round visitors, followed by Indiana, Clemson, and either Alabama or SMU.
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