Now 10 weeks into the 2024 college football season, it’s time to switch from the ultimately meaningless AP and Coaches Polls to the College Football Playoff Committee’s initial College Football Playoff Rankings. These will be the numbers that guide teams and fans for the rest of the college football season.
When do the first rankings come out, and what do you need to know about the change in postseason format?
What Do You Need To Know About the College Football Playoff Rankings?
The first College Football Playoff Rankings release of 2024 is nearly upon us, as it will drop on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Here’s what you need to know about the release show and the College Football Playoff as a whole.
- Time: Nov. 5, 7 p.m. ET
- Channel: ESPN (Additional streaming on ESPN+)
- Number of Teams: 25
- Number of Rankings Releases: Six, one on each Tuesday from Nov. 5 to Dec. 3, then a final rankings release and playoff seeding on Sunday, Dec. 8 after conference championship week
ESPN likes its flair for the dramatic and will likely drop the initial top 25 rankings in a few batches at the beginning of the show before adding analysis and then showing a hypothetical College Football Playoff seeding using Tuesday’s rankings.
What’s Different About the College Football Playoff in 2024?
There’s some extra anticipation for this year’s initial College Football Playoff Rankings, largely because of the change in postseason format. Last year at this time, fewer than 10 teams had a realistic shot to make the College Football Playoff. This year, there are 39 teams with at least a 1% chance to make the College Football Playoff, according to College Football Network’s Football Playoff Meter.
The postseason was expanded to 12 teams this season, with the four highest-ranked conference champions earning first-round byes and teams ranked Nos. 5-12 playing first-round games on the campus of the higher seed.
The field will not be reseeded and will play a quarterfinal round, semifinal round, and CFP National Championship after that. It’s the largest postseason playoff in the history of the FBS, and fan bases are excited about the expanded access.
College Football Network’s FPM uses results and power rankings from throughout the season to help predict games, conference champions, and ultimately the College Football Playoff field. After Tuesday night, college football fans will have a better idea of where their team stands in the hierarchy of the sport.
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