With Week 0 of the 2024 college football season set to kick off in just a week, fans across the country are ready to watch their favorite teams in action.
The sport has changed dramatically over the last few years, and this season feels like the beginning to an entirely new era of college football. Super conferences are finally here after years of speculation, regionality is all but gone, and it is no longer a secret that money is the primary driver of the sport.
Perhaps the biggest change that we will experience this season is the introduction of a 12-team playoff format. This expansion comes just 10 years after the first ever college football playoff and a decade of a 4-team playoff field.
The new 12-team field will include five automatic bids (the five highest-ranked conference champions) as well as seven at-large bids that will go to the highest-ranked remaining teams after the champions.
Before the chaos ensues, here's how I think the first-ever 12-team playoff field will turn out:
2024 Preseason 12-team CFP Prediction
Seed | Team | Bid Status |
|---|---|---|
1 | Georgia | SEC Champion |
2 | Ohio State | Big Ten Champion |
3 | Kansas State | Big 12 Champion |
4 | Florida State | ACC Champion |
5 | Alabama | At-large |
6 | Oregon | At-large |
7 | Texas | At-large |
8 | Notre Dame | At-large |
9 | Penn State | At-large |
10 | Ole Miss | At-large |
11 | Utah | At-large |
12 | Liberty | Highest-ranked G5 Champ |
There has been a lot of Texas talk this offseason, but the SEC still goes through Georgia and Alabama. I have the two regional rivals meeting for the conference championship with Georgia coming out on top, mostly because they play in Tuscaloosa in the regular season and it will be tough for Alabama to beat Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs twice.
If this is how the SEC truly plays out, it will set the stage for a possible third matchup between Alabama and Georgia in the College Football Playoff. Beyond them, I have Texas and Ole Miss making the playoff with at-large bids and fellow SEC contenders LSU and Tennessee narrowly missing out.
Similarly, Ohio State has been at or near the top of the Big Ten for a long time, and I see the Buckeyes holding off newcomer Oregon for the league crown. Michigan will once again be very good, but I envision Penn State finally eclipsing the Wolverines and making the playoff as Michigan enters the Sherrone Moore regime with some question marks and a lot of production to replace.
In the ACC, Florida State will fend off several up-and-coming challengers to win the league. I am higher on Clemson than most, but I have them and Miami just outside the playoff field in this prediction. Notre Dame will be consistent once again under Marcus Freeman and earn an at-large bid.
The Big 12 may have more depth and balance than any other league. Culture is the name of the game in this conference, with several teams boasting experience, continuity, strong lines of scrimmage, and good quarterback play.
Utah is the favorite with Cam Rising back under center, but there are plenty of challengers and even capable dark horses like West Virginia. In the end, I have Kansas State and true sophomore quarterback Avery Johnson breaking through and winning the league, with Utah sneaking into the 12-team playoff as an at-large.
In the Group of Five ranks, Liberty will ride a laughably weak schedule to an undefeated regular season and a playoff berth. While the Flames schedule is favorable, it also means they will be walking a tightrope all season; one loss and they will likely be eliminated from playoff contention. A week five showdown with Appalachian State could ultimately prove to be a G5 play-in game, while teams like Boise State and Memphis will also push for the last auto-bid.