College Football Playoff expansion: What would a 24-team bracket have looked like last season?

Following the conclusion of the 2025 college football season, analysts have applied the final College Football Playoff committee rankings to a hypothetical 24-team bracket model. This exercise illustrates how the postseason landscape would have shifted under an expanded format compared to the actual playoff structure utilized during the year.

The proposed 24-team bracket would have introduced several new first-round pairings, including matchups such as Notre Dame versus Iowa, Miami versus Houston, and Texas versus Tulane. These projections provide a visual representation of how a larger field would incorporate additional programs into the playoff competition.