Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt (10) scrambles away from Texas linebacker Colin Simmons (11) during the first quarter of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

College Football Playoff Announces Changes to 12-Team Format

Originally posted on Texas Longhorns on SI
By Tyler Firtel | Last updated May 22, 2025 3:42 PM ET

The 12-team College Football Playoff format will look notably different during the 2025 season.

ESPN's Heather Dinich reported Thursday that the 12-team CFP will be moving to a straight seeding format, "rewarding the selection committee's top four teams with the top four seeds and a first-round bye." The decision was made unanimously by the CFP's management committee.

The shift to straight seeding eliminates the top four conference champions automatically getting byes. Although five conference champions will continue to get guarenteed admission into the CFP, seeding and byes will result straight from the selection committee's final rankings.

The Texas Longhorns, the third-ranked team going into the CFP last season, were No. 5 in the CFP due to the conference champion feature. Without it, the Longhorns would have been No. 3 and rewarded with a bye despite losing in the Southeastern Conference Championship to Georgia.

Boise State and Arizona State, who were the No. 3 and No. 4 teams in the CFP while ninth and 12th overall in the final rankings, were beneficaries of last year's conference champion format. Both lost in the quarterfinals following their byes, Arizona State to Texas in an overtime thriller.

The adjustment allows multiple teams from the same conference to potentially receive first-round byes. The new format means the byes are likely to go to Power Four conference teams or Notre Dame, who is now eligible for a bye even as an independent.

Executive director of the CFP Rich Clark says that the adjustment allows them to "construct a postseason bracket that recognizes the best performance on the field during the entire regular season."

The CFP announcement also confirmed that all other operational policies will remain the same in the 2025-26 season, including first-round games being held at the higher seed's home stadium.

Texas will begin the 2025 season in Columbus against Ohio State on Aug. 30.

This article first appeared on Texas Longhorns on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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