ESPN College Football Writers Agree on One Team to Reach National Championship

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jackson Naugle | Last updated Nov 24, 2024 5:39 PM ET

ESPN college football writers Mark Schlabach and Kyle Bonagura unveiled their latest College Football Playoff projections on Sunday, unanimously predicting one team to make the national championship game in January.

While both writers' 12-team bracket predictions featured the same 12 teams, the seeds and the paths each team took through the bracket differed slightly.

Still, as the playoff picture comes further into focus, both longtime analysts could agree about one team that's continued to separate itself this fall.

Oregon, the lone undefeated team remaining in FBS, was included in both writers' projected national championships. While Bonagura had the Ducks facing off against Texas, Schlabach had them taking on Georgia.

Both theoretical matchups would put Oregon up against the SEC, a conference it has struggled with historically. Since 2011, the Ducks are just 1-4 against SEC teams.

If they want to win their first national championship in school history, they'll need to shake the curse, as both Bonagura and Schlabach have three SEC teams in their projected playoff fields.

The Ducks will be in action again on Saturday as they host Washington before heading into the Big Ten Championship Game, which could hold tremendous weight in terms of playoff seeding.

If the Ducks win out, they're all but guaranteed the No. 1 seed. If they lose one or both of their next two games, they're more likely to miss out on a bye week.

In other words, there's still plenty to be decided about the 2024-25 College Football Playoff field with just one week left in the regular season.

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

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