What will the 2025-26 College Football Playoff look like, according to the preseason Top 25 rankings?
The preseason Top 25 poll, via the Associated Press, was released on Monday. Texas came in at No. 1 overall. The Longhorns, led by redshirt sophomore quarterback Arch Manning, have a lot of hype heading into the 2025 season. Texas is coming off a College Football Playoff semifinal loss to Ohio State.
Penn State came in at No. 2 in the rankings. Ohio State is third, setting up a No. 1 vs. No. 3 matchup for Week 1. Meanwhile, Clemson and Georgia round out the top five.
The 2025-26 College Football Playoff will once again feature 12 teams. But it’s not just the 12 highest ranked teams. Instead, it’s the four conference champions (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC), the seven highest-ranked at-large teams and the highest-ranked Group of Five team.
According to the preseason Top 25 poll from the Associated Press, here’s what that 12-team field will look like.
The four conference champions
According to the Associated Press’s preseason Top 25 rankings, the following four teams will win their respective conferences and secure automatic bids to the College Football Playoff in 2025-26:
Texas – SECPenn State – Big TenClemson – ACCArizona State – Big 12
The seven at-large teams
There will be some huge at-large teams, as only four can win the major conferences. Just last year, Ohio State made it into the field as an at-large No. 8 seed. The Buckeyes went on to win the College Football Playoff, knocking off Tennessee, Oregon, Texas and Notre Dame.
Here’s who this year’s seven at-large teams will be, according to the Associated Press’s preseason Top 25 poll:
Ohio StateGeorgiaNotre DameOregonAlabamaLSUMiami
Group of 5 pick
Last year, Boise State made it into the field as a No. 3 seed, as the highest-ranked Group of Five team. Once again, the Broncos are projected to make it into the field this year. Boise State is the highest-ranked Group of Five team in the country heading into the regular season.
Final rankings
The College Football Playoff teams for 2025-26 will be seeded directly based on their final rankings by the committee.
As such, here’s what the final Top 12 would look like, according to the Associated Press’s preseason rankings:
TexasPenn StateOhio StateClemsonGeorgiaNotre DameOregonAlabamaLSUMiamiArizona StateBoise State
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Who are you taking to win this year’s 12-Team College Football Playoff?
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