COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The 2024 dates and bowl games are set for the new 12-team College Football Playoff.
The top four teams will receive a bye while the next four teams will have home field advantage or play at another site of their choosing. OSU athletic director Gene Smith has previously said he would prefer playing at Lucas Oil Stadium instead of Ohio Stadium.
First round games (on campuses)
- Friday, Dec. 20, 2024 (1 game in the evening)
- Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024 (3 games: early afternoon, late afternoon, evening)
Quarterfinal games
- Vrbo Fiesta Bowl: Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024 (evening)
- Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl: Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025 (early afternoon)
- Rose Bowl: Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025 (late afternoon)
- Allstate Sugar Bowl: Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025 (evening)
Semifinal games
- Capital One Orange Bowl: Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 (evening)
- Goodyear Cotton Bowl: Friday, Jan. 10, 2025 (evening)
National Championship
- Monday, Jan. 20, 2025 Mercedes Benz Stadium (Atlanta, Georgia)
12-team CFP format
The 12 CFP teams will be the six conference champions ranked highest by the selection committee followed by the six highest-ranked teams not included among the six highest-ranked conference champions. Under that format, Ohio State would have been the No. 6 seed in 2022 and hosted No. 11 Penn State.
The semifinal games will take place the week of the NFL’s final regular season week but not over the weekend. A bye week has been placed on NFL Wild Card weekend between the semifinals and the national title game.
