Who Has the Most College Football Playoff Appearances? Clemson, Alabama Are Tied

Eleven programs have appeared in College Football Playoff history, with Clemson and Alabama leading the way with six times apiece.

Hello 2021 and the College Football Playoff!

Yes, it is finally time for the four-team postseason tournament that began in the 2014–15 season, and this year, it'll feature Alabama and Notre Dame in the Rose Bowl as well as Clemson and Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. 

The semifinals will feature three of this year’s Heisman Trophy finalists, two coaches who have multiple national titles in their back pocket, and an variety of players who will undoubtedly land on a NFL roster in the near future. 

With high-caliber performances across the board and deep postseason history, who has played in the College Football Playoff the most since it was created? 

It's tied between Clemson and Alabama at six playoff berths each. Both the Tigers and Crimson Tide have only missed one year since college football went away from the BCS format.

Here's the full list of the 11 programs that have played in the College Football Playoff. 

• Alabama: six appearances (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020). It missed in 2019 and played in the Citrus Bowl, beating Michigan 35-16. 
  
• Clemson: six appearances (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020). It won the national championship over Alabama in 2016 and 2018, the latter with Heisman finalist Trevor Lawrence at starting quarterback. 
• Oklahoma: four appearances (2015, 2017, 2018, 2019). While the Sooners are tied for the second most appearances, they have never won a playoff game. 
• Ohio State: four appearances (2014, 2016, 2019, 2020). The Buckeyes won both the Sugar Bowl and national championship in 2014. However, they have not made it back to the national championship since. Ohio State faces Clemson at 8 p.m. EST on Friday, Jan. 1. 
• Notre Dame: two appearances (2018, 2020). The Fighting Irish fell to Clemson 30-3.  
• Georgia: one appearance (2017). The Bulldogs beat Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl, 54-48, in double overtime. Alabama narrowly beat Georgia in the championship. 
• Oregon: one appearance (2014). The Ducks made it all the way to the national championship that season, only to fall to Ohio State. 
• Florida State: one appearance (2014). Then-No. 3 FSU's single appearance featured a 59-20 loss to then-No. 2 Oregon. 
• LSU: one appearance (2019). The Tigers won the national championship that year 42-25 over Clemson.  
• Michigan State: one appearance (2015). Then-No. 3 Spartans didn't score a single point against then-No. 2 Alabama. 
• Washington: one appearance (2016). Then-No. 4 Washington only lost 24-7 to then-No. 1 Alabama in the Peach Bowl.