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College Football Playoff Shifts to Straight-Seeding Model for 2025

Originally posted on Heartland College Sports
By Bryan Clinton | Last updated May 22, 2025 4:53 PM ET

The College Football Playoff is poised for a shake-up once again—and it’s coming a year before most thought possible.

According to a report from Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger, CFP executives met on a call Thursday and voted unanimously to move to a “straight seeding” model for this year’s playoff.

Going forward, teams will be seeded directly based on the College Football Playoff committee’s rankings, from No. 1 to No. 12, officially doing away with the concept that give the top four seeds to conference champions.

The decision was expected to include a financial compromise to continue distributing $8 million to the top four-highest ranked conference champions even if those teams are not seeded in the top four.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) May 22, 2025

One of the primary reasons for resistance to this idea in the first place was the financial benefit of earning one of those four seeds—which equated to an $8 million disbursement to the four highest-ranked teams, which were all conference champions.

Now, as Dellenger reports, the decision is being pushed through, and in large part because of a compromise that will continue to distribute that $8 million to the four highest-ranked conference champions, even if they aren’t among the top four teams.

Another notable change with this new format would be Notre Dame’s ability to now earn a first-round bye, as their status as an independent previously kept them from being ranked any higher than the No. 5 seed.

At this point, it does seem like the common sense play—and with the Big 12 Champion all but guaranteed to still cash in on an $8 million payday, it’s a compromise that’s well worth the change.

This article first appeared on Heartland College Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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