Understanding the College Football Playoff Committee Voting Process

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Understanding the College Football Playoff Committee Voting Process

The 2025 College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings will debut on Tuesday at 8 p.m. This release offers an early glimpse into how the CFP committee evaluates teams leading up to the selection of the 12-team playoff next month. As anticipation builds, understanding the CFP voting process becomes essential.

Overview of the CFP Committee Voting Process

The CFP committee consists of 12 members. Each individual serves a standard term of three years, which may be extended under specific circumstances. Notably, if a member is serving as chair, their term can be lengthened by one year.

Ranking Schedule

The committee will publish weekly rankings of the top 25 teams until Selection Day, scheduled for December 7. This date follows the conclusion of the conference championship games and marks the selection of the playoff teams.

First ranking: November 4
Subsequent rankings: November 11, November 18, November 25, December 2

Voting Procedure

To determine the rankings, the committee employs a seven-round voting process. This includes a listing step where teams are considered, followed by a ranking step based on the votes received.

Some members may recuse themselves due to ties with specific programs. A recusal prohibits participation in votes or discussions relating to that team. Members are fully recused if they receive direct compensation from the program or have a close family member involved with the team.

Key Factors in Rankings

The CFP committee evaluates teams based on several critical criteria:

Strength of schedule
Head-to-head results
Performance against common opponents
Player and coach availability
Statistical data and analytics
Game film analysis

Selection Day and Playoff Structure

On Selection Day, the committee will rank the top four teams as seeds 1 through 4. These teams will receive byes in the first round. The remaining eight teams will be seeded 5-12, including the five highest-ranked conference champions.

The first round matchups will be as follows:

No. 5 vs. No. 12
No. 6 vs. No. 11
No. 7 vs. No. 10
No. 8 vs. No. 9

In the quarterfinals, the seeding determines the matchups among the top seeds and their respective opponents from the first round. When assigning quarterfinal sites, bowl contract relationships take priority. However, seeding and rankings may also influence site assignments.

Geographical considerations will guide the choice of semifinal sites, particularly for the No. 1 seed.