College Football Playoff 2024 bracket goes live: Who's in? Who's out?

Everything comes down to this: Here is the 2024 College Football Playoff bracket and rankings as embark on the historic first 12-team format

It's official: Here is your 2024 College Football Playoff bracket / USA Today Sports | Imagn

The debates are over and the decisions are in. After pouring over the strength of schedules, results against common opponents, and all the other metrics, college football’s bigwigs have made it official, revealing their final bracket and rankings for the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff.

The four highest-ranked conference champions will receive the No. 1 through No. 4 seeds and first-round byes in the playoff, while the next seven highest-ranked teams and the fifth-best conference champion are seeded No. 5 through No. 12 in their ranking order.

Enough talk: Here is the official 12-team College Football Playoff bracket and full top 25 rankings as we enter a historic 2024 postseason.

College Football Playoff 2024: Who's in? Who's out?

1. Oregon. The consensus top-ranked team in college football completed the only undefeated record in FBS this season by taking out Penn State to win the Big Ten Championship Game, in addition to victories against Ohio State and Group of Five standard-bearer Boise State.

2. Georgia. A signature victory against favored Texas in the SEC Championship Game clinches a first-round bye for the two-loss Bulldogs, and enters a historic College Football Playoff as one of the favorites to win the national championship.

3. Boise State. From start to finish, the Broncos have been the committee’s favorite from the Group of Five, capping off an elite 2024 season as Ashton Jeanty ran for 206 yards to beat UNLV and win the Mountain West championship, winning 11 straight games since a 3-point loss to Oregon.

4. Arizona State. Saved from having to play on the road thanks to Clemson beating SMU for the ACC title, the Sun Devils are on a roll, taking a first-round bye instead thanks also in part to their dominating performance against Iowa State to win the Big 12 championship, winning 6 straight games, including 3 against ranked teams.

5. Texas. An easier path for the Longhorns, who lost to Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, proving how much the committee values results in that conference, despite the team not having any victories against ranked competition.

6. Penn State. Happy Valley will host a first-round playoff game after coming up a little short against Oregon in the Big Ten Championship Game, earning a higher seed than the Ohio State team they lost to, and both of their two losses came by just a touchdown.

7. Notre Dame. No conference title means the Irish can’t be ranked higher than fifth, so they have a longer road to a national title, but this team looks the part, winning 10 straight games since a loss at home to Northern Illinois, ranking among college football’s best in scoring differential and is the only team in the country that ranks top-five in both scoring offense and defense.

8. Ohio State. Everything might be on the line for head coach Ryan Day, who, despite his otherwise-sterling 66-10 record, owns four straight losses to Michigan, the last one forfeiting a right to play for the Big Ten title and earn a first-round bye. Now, his Buckeyes face a critical moment entering the first round.

9. Tennessee. One of college football’s best-performing teams in rushing, where it ranks 9th nationally, and in total defense, sitting fourth in FBS in scoring, total production, and yards allowed per play, holding all but one opponent to under 20 points, and owns a statement victory against Alabama.

10. Indiana. Sure, there are questions around the Hoosiers’ strength of schedule and that ugly loss to Ohio State, but this is still an 11-1 team that ranks top-five in scoring margin, second nationally with over 43 points per game, and sixth in FBS allowing just 15 points on average to opponents.

11. SMU. The big decision of the College Football Playoff has been made, as the ACC runner-up Mustangs get the last spot in the historic 12-team field over SEC powerhouse Alabama, giving the ACC two teams in the playoff tournament behind one of the nation’s most potent offenses.

12. Clemson. Just getting back to the College Football Playoff is a remarkable achievement itself for the three-loss Tigers, but they earned it after Miami’s late-season loss and also by taking down Southern Methodist to win the ACC championship when they were given the chance.

First team out: Alabama

Second team out: Miami

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College Football Playoff bracket

No. 12 Clemson at
No. 5 Texas

Winner plays No. 4 Arizona State

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No. 11 SMU at
No. 6 Penn State

Winner plays No. 3 Boise State

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No. 10 Indiana at
No. 7 Notre Dame

Winner plays No. 2 Georgia

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No. 9 Tennessee at
No. 8 Ohio State

Winner plays No. 1 Oregon

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College Football Playoff rankings

1. Oregon
2. Georgia
3. Texas
4. Penn State
5. Notre Dame
6. Ohio State
7. Tennessee
8. Indiana
9. Boise State
10. SMU
11. Alabama
12. Arizona State
13. Miami
14. Ole Miss 
15. South Carolina
16. Clemson
17. BYU
18. Iowa State
19. Missouri
20. Illinois
21. Syracuse
22. Army
23. Colorado
24. UNLV
25. Memphis

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