College Football Playoff bracket picks: Expert predictions for who will win 2025 national championship

The 2025-26 College Football Playoff bracket is set, and the countdown is on for the beginning of the action. First-round games are set for Dec. 19-20 at on-campus locations before we get into quarterfinal play Dec. 31-Jan. 1. It all builds toward a champion being crowned Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami after what promises to be a captivating journey through a bracket stocked with intrigue.

Kicking things off on Dec. 19 will be (8) Oklahoma and (9) Alabama as the Sooners host the Crimson Tide in a rematch of an SEC battle that OU won 23-21 on Nov. 15. A triple-header is on the docket for the next day as the field will shrink to eight ahead of the quarterfinal round, which is centered around New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. 

That's when the top four seeds will make their CFP debuts. Can No. 1 seed Indiana complete its storybook march to the top of college football? Or will No. 2 seed Ohio State rebound from its Big Ten Championship Game loss to the Hoosiers and repeat as the national champion. No. 3 seed Georgia and No. 4 seed Texas Tech will also have something to say after winning the SEC and Big 12, respectively. Of course last season it was the Buckeyes who won it all as the No. 8 seed. Could a champion emerge from the 5-10 range once again?

Our CBS Sports experts spent the season covering and analyzing all the action. Now, as the postseason dawns, they are sharing their predictions and analysis for how the 12-team playoff will unfold.

2025-26 College Football Playoff bracket picks

Tom Fornelli

Indiana and Ohio State have been the two best teams in the country all season according to both the human and computer polls, and Saturday night's headbanger in Indianapolis confirmed it in my eyes. They will meet again, and I like Ohio State's chances of winning the rematch a little more than Indiana's. As for the rest, it's mostly chalk because that's how college football works most of the time. Some would say it's why we never needed 12 teams in a "playoff" to begin with. 

Chip Patterson

Now that the College Football Playoff has gone to straight seeding the bracket has competitive balance, so it's highly unlikely that we will see the No. 7 seed and the No. 8 seed play in the national championship game like we did a year ago. The top five teams in the country on Selection Day are the only five teams I'd pick to win multiple games against this field, and then it's just a matter of who can be healthiest and best prepared for the rematches I've projected along the way. Ultimately I can't shake Ryan Day's comments after the Big Ten Championship Game loss where he noted that it will hurt the Buckeyes to have walked off the field without a trophy, and my prediction is now that Ohio State has encountered some real adversity it will attack the playoff run with a renewed edge and bring back-to-back 12-team CFP titles to Columbus. 

John Talty

My bracket is mostly chalk, but this feels like an especially top-heavy year. I think the champion will be one of the following four teams: Georgia, Indiana, Ohio State or Oregon. I like Oregon to pull off the upset over Texas Tech, but fall just short again against the Hoosiers. Ohio State-Georgia will be a heavyweight fight and would be one of the best we see all year. I ultimately went with Ohio State to win it all because of its combination of elite offense and defense. Indiana did a tremendous job slowing down the Buckeyes in the Big Ten Championship, but think Julian Sayin and Co. will look better in a title game rematch. 

Brandon Marcello

Teams with first-round byes fared horribly last season in the playoff, but that won't be the case this year. I'm projecting the top four seeds to advance to the semifinals. From there, I'm going to trust the two best coaches in the country to push their teams into the national championship. Curt Cignetti has built Indiana into a legitimate title contender, particularly along that defensive line that sacked Ohio State's Julian Sayin five times. Georgia seems to be improving, and I continue to turn back to the second-half adjustments Kirby Smart made in an eventual loss to Alabama in the regular season. He shut the Tide down after falling behind early, and then took those lessons to smother them in the SEC Championship Game. In a battle of the two best coaches in the country, give me a Georgia team and coach motivated by the disappointment of a flat performance last season in the playoff. 

Shehan Jeyarajah

Matchups are everything in the College Football Playoff, especially with 12 teams that all have some holes. Alabama will avenge their flukey loss to Oklahoma, giving us the first "upset" of the first round. Additionally, the byes will prove far more valuable this year as national contenders have time to get healthy. That will prove especially valuable for Texas Tech, which will use a revitalized Behren Morton to upset Indiana and reach the title game. But while my faith in Ohio State is somewhat shaken after their struggles against the Hoosiers, they're still the most complete team in the country. The Buckeyes go back-to-back. 

Chris Hummer

In a season generally defined by parity, it does feel like five teams have separated themselves from everyone else. It makes every pick in the first and second round feel pretty easy outside of Texas Tech versus Oregon. I feel like the country at large is undervaluing Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are a truly elite defense and an offense that can create a big play (1st nationally in plays of 20-plus yards) at any time. I think that carries Texas Tech to the national title game -- yes, even over Oregon and Indiana. As for the other side of the bracket, Ohio State and Georgia are destined to clash. It'll be a close game, but I just can't pick against Ohio State. Georgia is a physical, tough team peaking at the right time. But the Buckeyes don't have any obvious weaknesses while I still question elements of UGA, particularly consistency against the pass. As for the national title game ... that's when a boom (and occasionally bust) Red Raiders offense gets exposed. The Buckeyes become the first team since Alabama in 2011-12 to win back-to-back national titles. 

David Cobb

Consider this my mea culpa on Texas Tech, a team that I predicted would be the most overrated in the Big 12. It turns out the Red Raiders were vastly underrated. Buying talent is one thing, but getting it to work together in a cohesive way is much more difficult, and that's what head coach Joey McGuire has done. But even after wiping the floor with the rest of the Big 12, Texas Tech still isn't getting the credit it deserves nationally for the wholesale dominance it showed all season. With a top-five offense and defense, the Red Raiders are poised to make some noise. 

Brad Crawford

Indiana and Ohio State have played in a different tier than the rest of college football throughout the season and Saturday night's Big Ten Championship Game result only re-emphasized that point to me. The selection committee nailed the top-4 seeding, despite many assuming Georgia's win over Alabama in Atlanta had clinched the No. 2. I didn't see it. The Hoosiers and Buckeyes dominate on both sides of the football and are destined to meet again next month. This time around, Ohio State will have better execution in the red zone and win the rematch for a second consecutive national title.