The 12-team college football field will be unveiled on Sunday and we have three simple predictions before games begin.

There will be excitement for the teams coming in. There will be controversy for the teams left out. And of course there will be confusion for anyone having this experience for the first time.

From seedings to bye weeks to the playoff dates themselves, there are new features to the 12-team College Football Playoff that you may not know about as you delve into the final College Football Playoff rankings.

We’re here to help answer all your playoff questions?

MORE COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF NEWS:

Why is the placement in the brackets so confusing?

Because the math doesn’t add up. The seeding does not match the College Football Playoff rankings.

In the 12-team College Football Playoff, the top five ranked conference champions automatically receive a spot in the College Football Playoff. That means the winners of five of the nine conference championships for those sports are eligible.

In this case, the winners of the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Mountain West Conference and SEC Conference championship games will receive automatic berths, but that’s not all.

The FOUR The top conference champions receive the top four seeds and a first-round bye.

Why is there confusion? These teams will NOT be ranked accordingly. Below is a look at the top 16 teams in the latest College Football Playoff rankings and their corresponding standings in the standings.

CFP RANKINGS	CFP RANK	sowing
Oregon (12-0)	1	1*
Texas (11-1)	2	2*
Penn State (11-1)	3	5
Notre Dame (11-1)	4	6
Georgia (10-2)	5	7
Ohio State (10-2)	6	8
Tennessee (10-2)	7	9
SMU (11-1)	8	3*
Indiana (11-1)	9	10
Boise State (11-1)	10	4
Alabama (9-3)	11	11
Miami (10-2)	12	–
Ole Miss (9-3)	13	–
South Carolina (9-3)	14	–
Arizona State (10-2)	15	12
Iowa State (10-2)	16	–

Oregon (Big Ten), Texas (SEC), SMU (ACC), Boise State (Mountain West) and Arizona State (Big 12) are the five highest-ranked conference winners in this example. SMU is No. 8 in the rankings, but as the third-highest projected conference champion, they would receive the No. 3 seed.

Arizona State is ranked 15th — which would be outside the top 12 if they weren’t among the five highest-ranked conference champions. Miami is ranked 12th – but they are not in the 12-team field as they are the eighth-highest overall team.

*Denotes projected conference winner.

This is what the latest planned bracket looks like as a result:

How do large berths work?

The fifth-ranked conference champion and seven overall teams selected by the College Football Playoff Committee make up the other EIGHT teams in the bracket. These teams will play in the first round of the College Football Playoff and the higher-ranked teams will host a home game on campus. One of those games will be played on Friday, December 20th, and a triple-header game will be played on Saturday, December 21st.

Here’s what that first round would look like, according to Sporting News’ latest CFP projections:

DATE	BOWL	MATCHUP	TIME	TV
December 20th	CFP first round game	No. 12 Arizona State at No. 5 Notre Dame	8 p.m	ESPN
December 21st	CFP first round game	No. 10 Indiana vs. No. 7 Penn State	12 o’clock	TNT
December 21st	CFP first round game	No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Georgia	4 p.m	TNT
December 21st	CFP first round game	No. 11 Alabama and No. 6 Ohio State	8 p.m	ESPN

MORE: Complete 2024 College Football Playoff schedule

Why is Notre Dame in the top four without a first-round bye?

The Fighting Irish are 11-1 this season and sit at No. 4 in the current CFP rankings. That seems to indicate that Notre Dame should get a week off, right?

Incorrect. Under the 12-team College Football Playoff agreement, Notre Dame is not eligible for a first-round bye because they do not play in a conference championship game.

“We cannot qualify for a bye. It’s limited to the top four ranked champions,” former Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick said on the College Football Playoff conference call on June 10, 2021. “I look forward to never hearing about that again.” We played one less game or don’t have a conference championship.”

You’ll hear about it later. The Irish do not compete in a Power 4 conference and have a five-game agreement with the ACC, and they are outscoring those opponents by an average of 27.4 points per game this season. Notre Dame also lost to Northern Illinois in Week 2. However, the Irish have not lost since then and will be regulars in this format with two losses or fewer.

Why don’t the top four teams get a home playoff game?

The New Year’s Six Bowls – Fiesta Bowl, Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl Game, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl Classic – will host the second round (quarterfinals) and third round (semifinals) in the 12-team College Football Playoff. This means the top four finishers will not host a playoff game on campus.

If the top-seeded Big Ten champion is in the top four, then that team – in this case No. 1 Oregon – will play in the Rose Bowl Game this year. If the top-ranked SEC team is one of the top four seeds – in this case, No. 2 Texas – then that team will play in the quarterfinal rounds of the Allstate Sugar Bowl.

MORE: Complete 2024-25 College Football Bowl Schedule

When will the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship game take place?

The first round of the College Football Playoff will be played the weekend of December 20-21. Here are the dates and times for these games. Here’s a look at the date, location, time and TV of these games.

DATE	BOWL	TIME	TV
December 20th	CFP first round game	8 p.m	ESPN
December 21st	CFP first round game	12 o’clock	TNT
December 21st	CFP first round game	4 p.m	TNT
December 21st	CFP first round game	8 p.m	ESPN

The quarter-finals will be played on Tuesday, December 31st and Wednesday, January 1st – the traditional New Year’s Day. Here’s a look at the date, location, time and TV of these games.

DATE	BOWL	TIME	TV
Dec 31st	Vrbo Fiesta Bowl (Quarterfinals)	7:30 p.m	ESPN
January 1st	Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl (Quarterfinals)	1 p.m	ESPN
January 1st	Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential (Quarterfinals)	5 p.m	ESPN
January 1st	Allstate Sugar Bowl (quarterfinals)	8:45 p.m	ESPN

The semifinals will be played on Wednesday, January 8th and Thursday, January 9th, so there will be no direct duel with the NFL Wild Card weekend. Here’s a look at the date, location, time and TV of these games.

DATE	BOWL	TIME	TV
January 9th	Capital One Orange Bowl (semifinals)	7:30 p.m	ESPN
January 10th	Cotton Bowl Classic (semifinals)	7:30 p.m	ESPN

The College Football Playoff championship game will take place on Monday, January 20th at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Here’s a look at the date, location, time and TV of these games.

DATE	BOWL	TIME	TV
January 20th	CFP National Championship	7:30 p.m	ESPN