Six SEC teams would be on CFP bracket with Texas as the top seed based on AP Top 25
Georgia defensive back KJ Bolden (4) reacts with safety Khalil Barnes (7), defensive back Ellis Robinson IV (1) and Georgia defensive lineman Valdin Sone (52) during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Western Kentucky, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026, in Athens, Ga. Credit: AP/Colin Hubbard
Six of the 12 teams in the College Football Playoff would be from the Southeastern Conference and two of the four first-round games would be all-SEC matchups based on The Associated Press Top 25 poll released Sunday.
Texas, Georgia, Notre Dame and Indiana would be the top four seeds and Miami, Ohio State, LSU and Mississippi would host first-round games.
The five highest-ranked conference champions — from the Power Four and one from the Group of Six — will qualify for the CFP. The other seven spots will be filled by the next highest-ranked teams. One of those at-large teams will be Notre Dame if the Fighting Irish are among the top 12 in the CFP’s final rankings.
With six of the top 10 teams in the AP poll, the SEC matched the record it set and matched in consecutive polls in 2024. In the two years of the 12-team playoff, no conference has had more than five teams in the field, and that was the SEC last season.
Based on the AP rankings, the CFP would open like this:
— No. 9 seed Texas A&M at No. 8 Mississippi. Winner vs. No. 1 Texas.
— No. 12 seed Boise State at No. 5 Miami. Winner vs. No. 4 Indiana.
Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian, center, celebrates Texas' win over Ohio State in an NCAA college football game in Austin, Texas, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. Credit: AP/Eric Gay
— No. 10 seed Alabama at No. 7 LSU. Winner vs. No. 2 Georgia.
— No. 11 seed BYU at No. 6 Ohio State. Winner vs. No. 3 Notre Dame.
The first three teams outside the bracket: Southern California, Texas Tech and Penn State.
The Trojans are ranked No. 12 by the AP but would get bumped by Boise State of the revamped Pac-12, which would be the automatically qualifying Group of Six champion. Boise State is not in the AP Top 25 but is the Group of Six team that received the most votes.
Notre Dame linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa (27), safety Adon Shuler, and safety Luke Talich (28) celebrate a fumble recovery during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Rice, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026, in South Bend, Ind. Credit: AP/Paul Barnick
First-round games are Dec. 18 and 19, quarterfinals Dec. 30 and Jan. 1, semifinals Jan. 14 and 15 and the championship game is Jan. 25 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
The AP will publish brackets based on the weekly Top 25 until the CFP selection committee unveils its initial rankings Nov. 3.
