2025 NCAA Division I FBS football season

For the 2025 FCS season, see 2025 NCAA Division I FCS football season.

2025 NCAA Division I FBS season
Number of teams	136
Duration	August 23, 2025 – December 13, 2025
Preseason AP No. 1	Texas
Postseason
Duration	December 13, 2025 – January 19, 2026
Bowl games	41
College Football Playoff
2026 College Football Playoff National Championship
Site	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, Florida)
NCAA Division I FBS football seasons
← 2024

The 2025 NCAA Division I FBS football season is the 156th season of college football in the United States, the 120th season organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and the 50th of the highest level of competition, the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The regular season began on August 23 and is scheduled to end on December 13. The postseason will begin on December 13, and, aside from any all-star games that are scheduled, end on January 19, 2026, with the College Football Playoff National Championship at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. This will be the second season of the 12-team College Football Playoff (CFP) system.

Conference realignment

Main article: 2021–2026 NCAA conference realignment

Two schools were playing their first FBS seasons in 2025; Delaware (from the Coastal Athletic Association) and Missouri State (from the Missouri Valley conference) began their transitions from Division I FCS in 2024 and joined Conference USA (CUSA) in July 2025. One formerly independent school, UMass, rejoined the Mid-American Conference (MAC) in 2025, but this time as a full member instead of football-only.

Team	Conference in 2024	Conference in 2025
Delaware	CAA Football (FCS)	CUSA
Missouri State	Missouri Valley (FCS)	CUSA
UMass	Independent (FBS)	MAC

The 2025 season will be the last for eight FBS teams in their current conferences.

School	Current conference	Future conference
Boise State	Mountain West	Pac-12
Colorado State	Mountain West	Pac-12
Fresno State	Mountain West	Pac-12
Northern Illinois	MAC	Mountain West
San Diego State	Mountain West	Pac-12
Texas State	Sun Belt	Pac-12
Utah State	Mountain West	Pac-12
UTEP	CUSA	Mountain West

Rule changes

The following playing rule changes were approved by the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Committee on April 17, 2025:

• In an effort to reduce feigned injuries, if medical personnel have to enter the field to tend to an injured player after the ball is spotted by officials ready for play, that team will be charged a timeout (or a five-yard delay of game penalty if out of timeouts). If this occurs after the two-minute timeout (and the injury is the only reason for the clock to stop), a 10-second runoff applies if the team is out of timeouts.
• Starting with the third overtime period, teams will only be permitted one timeout to use until the game is concluded. Previously teams received a timeout for each overtime period, including the two-point attempts that begin with the third overtime.
• Eliminating media timeouts after the second overtime period, and reducing the mandatory rest periods in games without media timeouts to only after the second overtime period (instead of after the second and fourth overtimes).
• Once a decision is made on instant replay reviews, the referee will only use the terms "Overturned" and "Upheld". "Confirmed" or "Stands" will no longer be used.
• On punt formations, no player can be directly in line of the snap to a potential kicker and no player can be inside of the frame of the snapper to qualify as a legal scrimmage kick formation. If these requirements are not met, five players numbered 50-79 must be on the line of scrimmage. Also, if the snapper is on the end of a line, he loses the scrimmage kick protection and the defense can line up a player over the snapper.
• If a player on the kickoff return team gives a "T" signal with his arms, the team gives up their right to return the kickoff and the play will be whistled dead once the ball is caught or recovered.
• Enhance rules regarding words or signals used to distract opponents trying to put the ball in play. The terms "stem" and "move" would only be permitted for defenses, and defenses cannot use cadence or sounds that simulate offensive team signals.
• Included players attempting to recover a loose ball to the list of "defenseless players".
• Contact to an offensive player in a passing posture is now considered "Roughing the Passer". If targeting occurs with this act, the roughing the passer penalty would remain even if the targeting penalty is overturned on replay.
• Added "simulating brandishing a weapon" to the list of acts considered unsportsmanlike conduct.
• Codifying the rule change from the 2024's Ohio State–Oregon game, after the two-minute timeout, teams called for having 12 or more players participating in a down will be penalized five yards, and the offense would have the option to reset the game clock to the time at the start of the play. If the 12th or more player(s) were running off the field and had no influence on the play, the yardage penalty would apply but no clock reset option would be available. The clock reset option is also available without accepting the penalty.
• The Coach to Player (C2P green dot) communication technology currently used in FBS will be a permissible option for the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). In 2026, the C2P technology will be allowed in Divisions II and III.

Points of emphasis

• Continued focus on protection of defenseless players, concussions, pre-snap actions from both offense/defense, and feigning injuries.
• Focus on penalizing taunting actions by players and pre-game actions between teams that become unsportsmanlike conduct.
• Sideline control, including leaving the playing area to dispute an officiating decision.
• Illegal contact against a passer.
• Pace of play and substituting during up-tempo offenses, ensuring defenses are not at a disadvantage before the snap.

Headlines

• April 25, 2025 – The University of Kentucky (UK) board of trustees approved a proposal to transfer the UK athletic program to a separate though related non-profit company known as Champions Blue, LLC. Both UK and outside media characterized the move, believed to be the first of its type by a major university, as a reaction to the then-impending settlement of the House v. NCAA legal case, which led to a formal revenue-sharing arrangement between athletic programs and student-athletes.
• July 21 – The American Athletic Conference announced a name change to the American Conference as part of a comprehensive rebranding strategy. The conference will also no longer use an initialism, opting for "American" as its short form.
• September 4 – The NCAA FBS Oversight Committee voted on major changes to the transfer portal. Under the proposal, the current 30-day period for players to enter the portal, divided into a 20-day December window and a 10-day April window, would be replaced by a single 10-day window that would run from January 2–11. This new 10-day window would apply to both undergraduate and graduate transfers. The committee also recommended that the month of December become a recruiting "dead period" during which coaches and recruits cannot meet in person, and that the signing date for new recruits change from August 1 to November 15 of a recruit's senior year in high school.
• September 17 – The NCAA Division I Administrative Committee approved the proposed single January transfer portal, but chose not to adopt the proposed January 2–11 dates. In response to feedback from FBS and FCS players, the oversight committees for both subdivisions were to discuss the dates and duration of the portal, with the Administrative Committee to set the final parameters at its scheduled October meeting. Players still competing in postseason play when the new portal closes will have a 5-day portal after their teams' final games, and the existing 30-day window for players undergoing a head coaching change will tentatively remain in place.
• September 29 – The FBS Oversight Committee recommended that the single January transfer portal be open for 15 days from January 2–16 instead of the originally proposed 10-day window. The revised recommendation also creates a 5-day window for players involved in postseason contests on or after January 12, with the window opening on the day after the team's last game. The Administrative Committee, whose next meeting was October 7–8, had to approve these changes before they took effect. The committee also discussed possible changes to the 30-day window for players undergoing a head coaching change, with continuing discussions set for its next scheduled meeting.
• October 8:
  • The Administrative Committee, which officially renamed itself the Division I Cabinet at its scheduled meeting, introduced a proposal to expand allowed logos on student-athletes' uniforms and equipment beyond those of the manufacturer. It also approved the following changes to the transfer portal, effective immediately:
    • The committee approved the previously recommended single window running from January 2–16. This only affects entry into the portal.
    • The window for players undergoing a head coaching change was modified. The window for these players will open five calendar days after the hiring or public announcement of a new head coach, and run for 15 days. Should a school not hire or announce a new head coach after 30 days from the previous coach's departure, a separate 15-day window will open on the 31st day, provided that the 31st day is on or after January 3. The opportunity for such a window will exist through June 30.
• October 12 – James Franklin was fired at Penn State after 12 seasons with the school. Franklin's contract had called for a buyout of more than $49 million, at the time the second biggest buyout in college football history, but a much lower buyout of $9 million was later negotiated when Franklin was hired for the vacancy at Virginia Tech. Franklin was 4–21 against AP top-10 opponents in his time at Penn State. Associate head coach Terry Smith will serve as the Nittany Lions' interim head coach for the remainder of the season, the school said.

Stadiums

• Due to the construction of a new press box at Bowers Stadium, Sam Houston played its 2025 home games at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston.
• The UCF Knights announced new naming rights as following the name change of FBC Mortage to Acrisure Mortgage, the FBC Mortgage Stadium was renamed to the Acrisure Bounce House.
• Following a donation of $100 million by businessman and Illinois alumnus Larry Gies to the school's athletic department, the Fighting Illini's stadium was renamed Gies Memorial Stadium in memory of his late father Larry Sr. shortly after the start of the season.
• As part of a project to better connect Rice University with the adjacent Rice Village shopping and restaurant district, the university announced that it would downsize Rice Stadium from its current capacity of about 47,000. By project completion, set for 2028, the new capacity is expected to be slightly over 30,000.
• On November 11, The University of Arizona announced a 20 year naming rights deal with the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, with the venue now being called Casino Del Sol Stadium.

Kickoff games

Week 0

The regular season began on Saturday, August 23 with five games in Week 0.

• Aer Lingus College Football Classic (at Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland):
  • No. 22 Iowa State 24, No. 17 Kansas State 21
• Kansas 31, Fresno State 7
• Western Kentucky 41, Sam Houston 24
• Hawaii 23, Stanford 20
• UNLV 38, Idaho State 31

Week 1

• Aflac Kickoff Game (at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia):
  • No. 24 Tennessee 45, Syracuse 26
  • No. 13 South Carolina 24, Virginia Tech 11
• Duke's Mayo Classic (at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina):
  • Appalachian State 34, Charlotte 11

Top 10 matchups

Rankings through Week 10 reflect the AP poll. Rankings for Week 11 and beyond list College Football Playoff Rankings first and AP poll rankings second; teams that were not ranked in the top 10 of both polls are noted.

Regular season

• Week 1
  • No. 3 Ohio State 14, No. 1 Texas 7 (Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio)
  • No. 9 LSU 17, No. 4 Clemson 10 (Memorial Stadium, Clemson, South Carolina)
  • No. 10 Miami (FL) 27, No. 6 Notre Dame, 24 (Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida)
• Week 5
  • No. 6 Oregon 30, No. 3 Penn State 24 (2OT) (Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania)
• Week 7
  • No. 7 Indiana 30, No. 3 Oregon 20 (Autzen Stadium, Eugene, Oregon)
• Week 8
  • No. 9 Georgia 43, No. 5 Ole Miss 35 (Sanford Stadium, Athens, Georgia)
• Week 11
  • No. 8/9 Texas Tech 29, No. 7/8 BYU 7 (Jones AT&T Stadium, Lubbock, Texas)
• Week 12
  • No. 5/5 Georgia 35, No. 10/10 Texas 10 (Sanford Stadium, Athens, Georgia)

Conference championship games

• No. 1/1 Ohio State vs. No. 2/2 Indiana (2025 Big Ten Football Championship Game, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana)
• No. 3/3 Georgia vs. No. 9/10 Alabama (2025 SEC Championship Game, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia)

FCS teams wins over FBS teams

Italics denotes FCS teams.

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Ref.
August 29	No. 10 (FCS) Tarleton State	Army	Michie Stadium • West Point, New York	30–27 2OT	23,032
August 30	Austin Peay	Middle Tennessee	Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium • Murfreesboro, Tennessee	34–14	18,505
September 6	Bryant	UMass	Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium • Amherst, Massachusetts	27–26	3,714
September 6	LIU	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, Michigan	28–23	15,313
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game.

Upsets

See also: 2025 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings § AP Poll

This section lists unranked teams defeating AP poll-ranked teams during the season.

Regular season

Date	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Result	Attendance	Ref.
August 28	No. 25 Boise State	South Florida	Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, Florida	7–34	34,707
August 30	No. 8 Alabama	Florida State	Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, Florida	17–31	67,277
September 6	No. 12 Arizona State	Mississippi State	Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi	20–24	50,808
September 6	South Florida	No. 13 Florida	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, Florida	18–16	89,909
September 6	Baylor	No. 17 SMU	Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, Texas	48–45 2OT	34,852
September 13	Vanderbilt	No. 11 South Carolina	Williams–Brice Stadium • Columbia, South Carolina	31–7	79,873
September 13	No. 12 Clemson	Georgia Tech	Bobby Dodd Stadium • Atlanta, Georgia (rivalry)	21–24	48,059
September 26	No. 8 Florida State	Virginia	Scott Stadium • Charlottesville, Virginia (Jefferson–Eppes Trophy)	46–38 2OT	50,107
September 26	No. 24 TCU	Arizona State	Mountain America Stadium • Tempe, Arizona	24–27	53,774
October 4	No. 7 Penn State	UCLA	Rose Bowl • Pasadena, California	37–42	39,256
October 4	No. 9 Texas	Florida	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, Florida (SEC Nation)	21–29	90,714
October 4	No. 14 Iowa State	Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, Ohio	30–38	38,007
October 11	No. 6 Oklahoma	Texas	Cotton Bowl • Dallas, Texas (Red River Rivalry)	6–23	92,100
October 11	No. 15 Michigan	USC	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, California	13–31	75,500
October 11	No. 21 Arizona State	Utah	Rice–Eccles Stadium • Salt Lake City, Utah	10–42	51,444
October 11	No. 22 Iowa State	Colorado	Folsom Field • Boulder, Colorado	17–24	52,698
October 11	Pittsburgh	No. 25 Florida State	Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, Florida	34–31	65,256
October 17	Louisville	No. 2 Miami (FL)	Hard Rock Stadium • Miami Gardens, Florida (Schnellenberger Trophy)	24–21	66,573
October 17	No. 25 Nebraska	Minnesota	Huntington Bank Stadium • Minneapolis, Minnesota ($5 Bits of Broken Chair Trophy)	6–24	48,549
October 18	No. 7 Texas Tech	Arizona State	Mountain America Stadium • Tempe, Arizona	22–26	54,177
October 18	No. 22 Memphis	UAB	Protective Stadium • Birmingham, Alabama (Battle for the Bones)	24–31	19,037
October 25	No. 18 South Florida	Memphis	Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium • Memphis, Tennessee	31–34	30,940
October 25	No. 23 Illinois	Washington	Husky Stadium • Seattle, Washington	25–42	68,630
October 25	Houston	No. 24 Arizona State	Mountain America Stadium • Tempe, Arizona	24–16	54,256
November 1	No. 8 Georgia Tech	NC State	Carter–Finley Stadium • Raleigh, North Carolina	36–48	56,919
November 1	No. 10т Miami (FL)	SMU	Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, Texas	20–26 OT	35,074
November 1	West Virginia	No. 22 Houston	TDECU Stadium • Houston, Texas	45–35	25,049
November 7	Tulane	No. 22 Memphis	Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium • Memphis, Tennessee	38–32	30,384
November 8	Wake Forest	No. 12 Virginia	Scott Stadium • Charlottesville, Virginia	16–9	55,568
November 8	California	No. 14 Louisville	L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium • Louisville, Kentucky	29–26 OT	51,381
November 8	No. 24 Washington	Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium • Madison, Wisconsin	10–13	71,217
November 14	Clemson	No. 19 Louisville	L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium • Louisville, Kentucky	20–19	51,234
November 15	Arizona	No. 22 Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, Ohio	30–24	37,099
November 15	No. 25 South Florida	Navy	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, Maryland	38–41	34,856
November 22	Pittsburgh	No. 15 Georgia Tech	Bobby Dodd Stadium • Atlanta, Georgia	42–28	52,413
November 22	TCU	No. 25 Houston	TDECU Stadium • Houston, Texas	17–14	30,852
November 29	No. 25 SMU	California	California Memorial Stadium • Berkeley, California	35–38	28,956
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game.

Conference standings

2025 American Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 20 Tulane y$   7 – 1     11 – 2   No. 24 North Texas y   7 – 1     11 – 2   Navy   7 – 1     9 – 2   South Florida   6 – 2     9 – 3   East Carolina   6 – 2     8 – 4   Memphis   4 – 4     8 – 4   Army   4 – 4     6 – 5   UTSA   4 – 4     6 – 6   Temple   3 – 5     5 – 7   Florida Atlantic   3 – 5     4 – 8   Rice   2 – 6     5 – 7   UAB   2 – 6     4 – 8   Tulsa   1 – 7     4 – 8   Charlotte   0 – 8     1 – 11   Championship: Tulane 34, North Texas 21 $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings	2025 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 17 Virginia y   7 – 1     10 – 2   Duke y   6 – 2     7 – 5   No. 12 Miami (FL)   6 – 2     10 – 2   No. 22 Georgia Tech   6 – 2     9 – 3   SMU   6 – 2     8 – 4   Pittsburgh   6 – 2     8 – 4   Louisville   4 – 4     8 – 4   Wake Forest   4 – 4     8 – 4   NC State   4 – 4     7 – 5   California   4 – 4     7 – 5   Clemson   4 – 4     7 – 5   Stanford   3 – 5     4 – 8   Florida State   2 – 6     5 – 7   Virginia Tech   2 – 6     3 – 9   North Carolina   2 – 6     4 – 8   Boston College   1 – 7     2 – 10   Syracuse   1 – 7     3 – 9   Championship: Virginia vs. Duke $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings	2025 Big Ten Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 2 Indiana y   9 – 0     12 – 0   No. 1 Ohio State y   9 – 0     12 – 0   No. 5 Oregon   8 – 1     11 – 1   No. 16 USC   7 – 2     9 – 3   No. 19 Michigan   7 – 2     9 – 3   No. 23 Iowa   6 – 3     8 – 4   Washington   5 – 4     8 – 4   Illinois   5 – 4     8 – 4   Minnesota   5 – 4     7 – 5   Nebraska   4 – 5     7 – 5   Northwestern   4 – 5     6 – 6   UCLA   3 – 6     3 – 9   Penn State   3 – 6     6 – 6   Wisconsin   2 – 7     4 – 8   Rutgers   2 – 7     5 – 7   Michigan State   1 – 8     4 – 8   Maryland   1 – 8     4 – 8   Purdue   0 – 9     2 – 10   Championship: Indiana vs. Ohio State $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings
2025 Big 12 Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 4 Texas Tech y   8 – 1     11 – 1   No. 11 BYU y   8 – 1     11 – 1   No. 15 Utah   7 – 2     10 – 2   No. 18 Arizona   6 – 3     9 – 3   No. 21 Houston   6 – 3     9 – 3   Arizona State   6 – 3     8 – 4   Iowa State   5 – 4     8 – 4   TCU   5 – 4     8 – 4   Cincinnati   5 – 4     7 – 5   Kansas State   5 – 4     6 – 6   Baylor   3 – 6     5 – 7   Kansas   3 – 6     5 – 7   UCF   2 – 7     5 – 7   West Virginia   2 – 7     4 – 8   Colorado   1 – 8     3 – 9   Oklahoma State   0 – 9     1 – 11   Championship: Texas Tech vs. BYU ^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings	2025 Conference USA football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Kennesaw State y$   7 – 1     10 – 3   Jacksonville State y   7 – 1     8 – 5   Western Kentucky   6 – 2     8 – 4   Missouri State   5 – 3     7 – 5   FIU   5 – 3     7 – 5   Louisiana Tech   5 – 3     7 – 5   Delaware   4 – 4     6 – 6   Liberty   3 – 5     4 – 8   Middle Tennessee   2 – 6     3 – 9   New Mexico State   2 – 6     4 – 8   UTEP   1 – 7     2 – 10   Sam Houston   1 – 7     2 – 10   Championship: Kennesaw State 19, Jacksonville State 15 $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025	2025 Mid-American Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Western Michigan y   7 – 1     8 – 4   Miami (OH) y   6 – 2     7 – 5   Ohio   6 – 2     8 – 4   Toledo   6 – 2     8 – 4   Central Michigan   5 – 3     7 – 5   Akron*   4 – 4     5 – 7   Buffalo   4 – 4     5 – 7   Kent State   4 – 4     5 – 7   Ball State   3 – 5     4 – 8   Eastern Michigan   3 – 5     4 – 8   Bowling Green   2 – 6     4 – 8   Northern Illinois   2 – 6     3 – 9   UMass   0 – 8     0 – 12   Championship: Western Michigan vs. Miami (OH) $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant * Ineligible for postseason play due to low APR score As of December 6, 2025
2025 Mountain West Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Boise State y$   6 – 2     9 – 4   UNLV y   6 – 2     10 – 3   New Mexico   6 – 2     9 – 3   San Diego State   6 – 2     9 – 3   Fresno State   5 – 3     8 – 4   Hawaii   5 – 3     8 – 4   Utah State   4 – 4     6 – 6   Air Force   3 – 5     4 – 8   Nevada   2 – 6     3 – 9   Wyoming   2 – 6     4 – 8   San Jose State   2 – 6     3 – 9   Colorado State   1 – 7     2 – 10   Championship: Boise State 38, UNLV 21 $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings	2025 Pac-12 Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   Washington State   1 – 1     6 – 6   Oregon State   1 – 1     2 – 10   As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings	2025 Southeastern Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 9 Alabama y   7 – 1     10 – 2   No. 3 Georgia y   7 – 1     11 – 1   No. 6 Ole Miss   7 – 1     11 – 1   No. 7 Texas A&M   7 – 1     11 – 1   No. 13 Texas   6 – 2     9 – 3   No. 8 Oklahoma   6 – 2     10 – 2   No. 14 Vanderbilt   6 – 2     10 – 2   Missouri   4 – 4     8 – 4   Tennessee   4 – 4     8 – 4   LSU   3 – 5     7 – 5   Kentucky   2 – 6     5 – 7   Florida   2 – 6     4 – 8   Auburn   1 – 7     5 – 7   Mississippi State   1 – 7     5 – 7   South Carolina   1 – 7     4 – 8   Arkansas   0 – 8     2 – 10   Championship: Georgia vs. Alabama $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings
2025 Sun Belt Conference football standings Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   East Division No. 25 James Madison xy$   8 – 0     12 – 1   Old Dominion   6 – 2     9 – 3   Coastal Carolina   5 – 3     6 – 6   Georgia Southern   4 – 4     6 – 6   Marshall   3 – 5     5 – 7   Appalachian State   2 – 6     5 – 7   Georgia State   0 – 8     1 – 11   West Division Troy xy   6 – 2     8 – 5   Southern Miss   5 – 3     7 – 5   Louisiana   5 – 3     6 – 6   Arkansas State   5 – 3     6 – 6   Texas State   3 – 5     6 – 6   South Alabama   3 – 5     4 – 8   Louisiana–Monroe   1 – 7     3 – 9   Championship: James Madison 31, Troy 14 $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings	2025 NCAA Division I FBS independents football records Conf. Overall Team   W   L     W   L   No. 10 Notre Dame   –     10 – 2   UConn   –     9 – 3   As of December 6, 2025 Rankings from CFP Rankings

Rankings

Main article: 2025 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

The Top 25 from the AP and USA Today Coaches Polls

Preseason polls

AP Ranking Team 1 Texas (25) 2 Penn State (23) 3 Ohio State (11) 4 Clemson (4) 5 Georgia (1) 6 Notre Dame 7 Oregon (1) 8 Alabama 9 LSU 10 Miami (FL) 11 Arizona State 12 Illinois 13 South Carolina 14 Michigan 15 Florida 16 SMU 17 Kansas State 18 Oklahoma 19 Texas A&M 20 Indiana 21 Ole Miss 22 Iowa State 23 Texas Tech 24 Tennessee 25 Boise State

USA Today Coaches Ranking Team 1 Texas (28) 2 Ohio State (20) 3 Penn State (14) 4 Georgia (3) 5 Notre Dame 6 Clemson (2) 7 Oregon 8 Alabama 9 LSU 10 Miami (FL) 11 Arizona State 12 Illinois 13 South Carolina 14 Michigan 15 Ole Miss 16 SMU 17 Florida 18 Tennessee 19 Indiana 20 Kansas State 21т Texas A&M Iowa State 23 BYU 24 Texas Tech 25 Boise State

Postseason

College Football Playoff bracket

Main article: 2025–26 College Football Playoff

This is the second year under the expanded College Football Playoff format. Under this format, the five highest-ranked conference champions will receive automatic bids, while the next seven highest-ranked teams will receive at-large bids. In a change starting this season, the top four seeds receive first-round byes, even if they are not conference champions.

First round

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Championship

Dec 31 – Cotton Bowl, AT&T Stadium

Dec 19 or 20 – Campus site

Jan 8 – Fiesta Bowl, State Farm Stadium

Jan 1 – Orange Bowl, Hard Rock Stadium

Dec 19 or 20 – Campus site

Jan 19 – Hard Rock Stadium

Jan 1 – Rose Bowl, Rose Bowl

Dec 19 or 20 – Campus site

Jan 9 – Peach Bowl, Mercedes-Benz Stadium

Jan 1 – Sugar Bowl, Caesars Superdome

Dec 19 or 20 – Campus site

Projected bracket

Projected bracket based on December 2 rankings

First round

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Championship

Dec 31/Jan 1

Dec 19/20 – Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium

1

Ohio State

Jan 8/9

8

Oklahoma

9

Alabama

Dec 31/Jan 1

Dec 19/20 – Autzen Stadium

4

Texas Tech

Jan 19 – Hard Rock Stadium

5

Oregon

12

Fifth-best conference champion^

Dec 31/Jan 1

Dec 19/20 – Vaught–Hemingway Stadium

3

Georgia

Jan 8/9

6

Ole Miss

11

Fourth-best conference champion^

Dec 31/Jan 1

Dec 19/20 – Kyle Field

2

Indiana

7

Texas A&M

10

Notre Dame

^NOTE: Miami (FL) is the highest-ranked ACC team but is not a participant in the ACC championship and therefore cannot qualify as one of the five highest-ranked conference champions, leaving the identities of the final two would-be conference champions uncertain. The ACC, American, and Sun Belt conferences are all represented in the December 2 rankings but are not represented in the projected bracket.

Bowl games

Main article: 2025–26 NCAA football bowl games

Normally, a team is required to have a .500 minimum winning percentage during the regular season to become bowl-eligible (six wins for an 11- or 12-game schedule, and seven wins for a 13-game schedule). If there are not enough winning teams to fulfill all open bowl slots, teams with losing records may be chosen to fill available bowl slots. Additionally, on the rare occasion in which a conference champion does not meet eligibility requirements, they are usually still chosen for bowl games via tie-ins for their conference.

Selection teams

The below lists of teams are based on team records as published by the NCAA and bowl eligibility criteria.

Bowl-eligible teams

• ACC (11): California, Clemson, Duke, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami (FL), NC State, Pittsburgh, SMU, Virginia, Wake Forest
• American (8): Army, East Carolina, Memphis, Navy, North Texas, South Florida, Tulane, UTSA
• Big Ten (12): Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, USC, Washington
• Big 12 (10): Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas State‡, TCU, Texas Tech, Utah
• CUSA (7): Delaware, FIU, Jacksonville State, Kennesaw State, Louisiana Tech, Missouri State, Western Kentucky
• MAC (5): Central Michigan, Miami (OH), Ohio, Toledo, Western Michigan
• Mountain West (7): Boise State, Fresno State, Hawaii, New Mexico, San Diego State, UNLV, Utah State
• Pac-12 (1): Washington State
• SEC (10): Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, LSU, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt
• SBC (9): Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, James Madison, Louisiana, Old Dominion, Southern Miss, Texas State, Troy
• Independent (2): Notre Dame, UConn

^‡ Kansas State opted out of its bowl game, but it was still bowl-eligible.

Number of postseason berths available: 82

Number of bowl-eligible teams: 82

Bowl-ineligible teams

• ACC (6): Boston College, Florida State, North Carolina, Stanford, Syracuse, Virginia Tech
• American (6): Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, Rice, Temple, Tulsa, UAB
• Big Ten (6): Maryland, Michigan State, Purdue, Rutgers, UCLA, Wisconsin
• Big 12 (6): Baylor, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma State, UCF, West Virginia
• CUSA (5): Liberty, Middle Tennessee, New Mexico State, Sam Houston, UTEP
• MAC (8): Akron, Ball State, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Northern Illinois, UMass
• Mountain West (5): Air Force, Colorado State, Nevada, San Jose State, Wyoming
• Pac-12 (1): Oregon State
• SEC (6): Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi State, South Carolina
• SBC (5): Appalachian State, Georgia State, Louisiana–Monroe, Marshall, South Alabama

Number of bowl-ineligible teams: 54

Conference summaries

Rankings in this section are based on CFP rankings released prior to the games (Week 13–December 2).

Note: Clicking on a link in the Conference column will open an article about that conference's championship game, where applicable.

Conference	Championship game				Players of the year				Coach of the year
	Date	Venue (Location)	Matchup	Result	Overall/MVP	Offensive	Defensive	Special teams
American	Dec 5	Yulman Stadium (New Orleans, Louisiana)	No. 24 North Texas at No. 20 Tulane	Tulane 34–21	—	Drew Mestemaker, QB, North Texas	Landon Robinson, DL, Navy	Patrick Durkin, K, Tulane	Eric Morris, North Texas
CUSA		AmFirst Stadium (Jacksonville, Alabama)	Kennesaw State at Jacksonville State	Kennesaw State 19–15	Cam Cook, RB, Jacksonville State	Kejon Owens, RB, FIU	Baron Hopson, LB, Kennesaw State Jacob Fields, DB, Louisiana Tech	Cole Maynard, P, Western Kentucky	Jerry Mack, Kennesaw State
MW		Albertsons Stadium (Boise, Idaho)	UNLV at Boise State	Boise State 38–21	—	Anthony Colandrea, QB, UNLV	Jaxton Eck, LB, New Mexico Chris Johnson, DB, San Diego State	Kansei Matsuzawa, K, Hawai‘i	Jason Eck, New Mexico
Sun Belt		Bridgeforth Stadium (Harrisonburg, Virginia)	Troy (West) at No. 25 James Madison (East)	James Madison 31–14	Alonza Barnett, QB, James Madison	Colton Joseph, QB, Old Dominion	Trent Hendrick, LB, James Madison	—	Bob Chesney, James Madison
ACC	Dec 6	Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, North Carolina)	No. 17 Virginia vs Duke		Haynes King, QB, Georgia Tech		Rueben Bain Jr., DE, Miami	—	Tony Elliott, Virginia
Big Ten		Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis, Indiana)	No. 1 Ohio State vs No. 2 Indiana		—	Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana	Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State	Nico Radicic, K, Indiana; Ryan Eckley, P, Michigan State; & Kaden Wetjen, RS, Iowa	Curt Cignetti, Indiana
Big 12		AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)	No. 4 Texas Tech vs No. 11 BYU		—	LJ Martin, RB, BYU	Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech	Palmer Williams, P, Baylor	Kalani Sitake, BYU
MAC		Ford Field (Detroit, Michigan)	Western Michigan vs Miami (OH)		Nadame Tucker, DE, Western Michigan	Broc Lowry, QB, Western Michigan	Nadame Tucker, DE, Western Michigan	Da’Realyst Clark, KOR, Kent State	Lance Taylor, Western Michigan
SEC		Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, Georgia)	No. 9 Alabama vs No. 3 Georgia		—
Pac-12†	—	—	—	—	—				—

Conference champions' bowl games

For conference champions not part of the College Football Playoff.

Conference	Champion	W–L	Rank	Bowl game
American	Tulane	11–2
CUSA	Kennesaw State	10–3
MAC
Mountain West	Boise State	9–4
Sun Belt	James Madison	12–1

At-large bowl games

At-Large Teams
School	Conference	Record	Result	Bowl game
	American
	ACC
	Big 12
	Big Ten
	Conference USA
	MAC
	Mountain West
	Sun Belt
	SEC

Conference performance in bowl games

See also: Bowl Challenge Cup

CFP bowl games are denoted in bold type. First-round CFP playoff games are included, and denoted as CFP1.

All-star games

Date	Time (EST)	Game	Site	Television	Participants	Results	Ref.
Dec 7, 2025	11:00 am	FCS Bowl	Municipal Stadium Daytona Beach, Florida	Varsity Sports Network	American Team National Team
Jan 10, 2026	Noon	Hula Bowl	Acrisure Bounce House Orlando, Florida	CBS Sports Network	Team Aina Team Kai
Jan 18, 2026	11:00 am	Tropical Bowl	Municipal Stadium Daytona Beach, Florida	Varsity Sports Network	American Team National Team
Jan 27, 2026	8:00 pm	East–West Shrine Bowl	AT&T Stadium Arlington, Texas	NFL Network	East Team West Team
Jan 31, 2026	2:30 pm	Senior Bowl	Hancock Whitney Stadium Mobile, Alabama		American Team National Team
Feb 21, 2026	4:00 pm	HBCU Legacy Bowl	Yulman Stadium New Orleans, Louisiana		Team Robinson Team Gaither

Awards and honors

Heisman Trophy voting

The Heisman Trophy is given to the year's most outstanding player

Player	School	Position	1st	2nd	3rd	Total

Other overall

Award	Winner	Position	School
AP Player of the Year
Lombardi Award
Maxwell Award	Jeremiyah Love Fernando Mendoza Julian Sayin	RB QB QB	Notre Dame Indiana Ohio State
SN Player of the Year
Walter Camp Award	Jeremiyah Love Fernando Mendoza Diego Pavia Jacob Rodriguez Julian Sayin	RB QB QB LB QB	Notre Dame Indiana Vanderbilt Texas Tech Ohio State

Special overall

Award	Winner	Position	School
Burlsworth Trophy (top player who began as walk-on)	Drew Mestemaker Febechi Nwaiwu Michael Taaffe	QB OL DB	North Texas Oklahoma Texas
Paul Hornung Award (most versatile player)
Polynesian Football Player of the Year Award (top Polynesian player)
Jon Cornish Trophy (top Canadian player)
Campbell Trophy ("academic Heisman")
Academic All-American of the Year
Wuerffel Trophy (humanitarian-athlete)	Matt Hofer Michael Taaffe Tanner Wall	OL DB S	Toledo Texas BYU

Offense

Quarterback

Award	Winner	School
Davey O'Brien Award	Fernando Mendoza Marcel Reed Julian Sayin	Indiana Texas A&M Ohio State
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award	Haynes King Fernando Mendoza Diego Pavia Marcel Reed Gunner Stockton	Georgia Tech Indiana Vanderbilt Texas A&M Georgia
Manning Award

Running back

Award	Winner	School
Doak Walker Award	Ahmad Hardy Kewan Lacy Jeremiyah Love	Missouri Ole Miss Notre Dame

Wide receiver

Award	Winner	School
Fred Biletnikoff Award	Skyler Bell Makai Lemon Jeremiah Smith	UConn USC Ohio State

Tight end

Award	Winner	School
John Mackey Award	Kenyon Sadiq Eli Stowers Michael Trigg	Oregon Vanderbilt Baylor

Lineman

Award	Winner	Position	School
Rimington Trophy (center)
Outland Trophy (interior lineman)	Spencer Fano Logan Jones Kayden McDonald	OT C DT	Utah Iowa Ohio State
Joe Moore Award (offensive line)	N/A

Defense

Award	Winner	Position	School
Bronko Nagurski Trophy (defensive player)	Caleb Downs Cashius Howell Leonard Moore Jacob Rodriguez	S DE CB LB	Ohio State Texas A&M Notre Dame Texas Tech
Chuck Bednarik Award (defensive player)	Caleb Downs Cashius Howell Jacob Rodriguez	S DE LB	Ohio State Texas A&M Texas Tech
Lott Trophy (defensive impact)

Defensive front

Award	Winner	School
Dick Butkus Award (linebacker)
Ted Hendricks Award (defensive end)

Defensive back

Award	Winner	Position	School
Jim Thorpe Award	Mansoor Delane Caleb Downs Leonard Moore	CB S CB	LSU Ohio State Notre Dame

Special teams

Award	Winner	School
Lou Groza Award (placekicker)	Aidan Birr Kansei Matsuzawa Tate Sandell	Georgia Tech Hawaiʻi Oklahoma
Ray Guy Award (punter)	Brett Thorson Evan Crenshaw Palmer Williams	Georgia Troy Baylor
Jet Award (return specialist)
Patrick Mannelly Award (long snapper)	Tyler Duzansky Beau Gardner Spencer Triplett	Penn State Georgia North Carolina

Coaches

Award	Winner	School
AFCA Coach of the Year
AP Coach of the Year
Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year
Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year
George Munger Award
Home Depot Coach of the Year
Paul "Bear" Bryant Award
Walter Camp Coach of the Year

Assistants

Award	Winner	Coordinator	School
AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year
Broyles Award

All-Americans

Main article: 2025 College Football All-America Team

The following players were recognized as consensus All-Americans for 2025. Unanimous selections are followed by an asterisk (*).

2025 Consensus All-Americans

Name	Position	Year	University
	Quarterback
	Running back
	Wide receiver
	Tight end
	Offensive line
	Defensive line
	Linebacker
	Defensive back
	Kicker
	Punter
	All-purpose/return specialist

Coaching changes

Preseason and in-season

This is restricted to coaching changes taking place on or after May 1, 2025, and will include any changes announced after a team's last regularly scheduled game before its bowl game. For coaching changes that occurred earlier in 2025, see 2024 NCAA Division I FBS end-of-season coaching changes.

School	Outgoing Coach	Date	Reason	Contract Buyout	Replacement
Virginia Tech	Brent Pry	September 14, 2025	Fired	$6 million	Philip Montgomery (interim)
UCLA	DeShaun Foster	September 14, 2025	Fired	$5 million	Tim Skipper (interim)
Oklahoma State	Mike Gundy	September 23, 2025	Fired	$15 million	Doug Meacham (interim)
Arkansas	Sam Pittman	September 28, 2025	Fired	$9.8 million	Bobby Petrino (interim)
Oregon State	Trent Bray	October 12, 2025	Fired	$4 million	Robb Akey (interim)
Penn State	James Franklin	October 12, 2025	Fired	$9 million	Terry Smith (interim)
UAB	Trent Dilfer	October 12, 2025	Fired	$2.4 million	Alex Mortensen
Florida	Billy Napier	October 19, 2025	Fired	$21 million	Billy Gonzales (interim)
Colorado State	Jay Norvell	October 19, 2025	Fired	$1.5 million	Tyson Summers (interim)
LSU	Brian Kelly	October 26, 2025	Fired	$54 million	Frank Wilson (interim)
Auburn	Hugh Freeze	November 2, 2025	Fired	$15.8 million	D. J. Durkin (interim)
California	Justin Wilcox	November 23, 2025	Fired	$10.9 million	Nick Rolovich (interim, bowl)
UConn	Jim L. Mora	November 26, 2025	Hired by Colorado State	N/A	Gordon Sammis (interim, bowl)
South Florida	Alex Golesh	November 30, 2025	Hired by Auburn	N/A	Kevin Patrick (interim, bowl)
Memphis	Ryan Silverfield	November 30, 2025	Hired by Arkansas	N/A	Reggie Howard (interim, bowl)
Coastal Carolina	Tim Beck	November 30, 2025	Fired	$1.7 million	Jeremiah Johnson (interim, bowl)
Ole Miss	Lane Kiffin	November 30, 2025	Hired by LSU	N/A	Pete Golding

End of season

The list includes coaching changes announced during the season that will not take effect until the end of the season.

School	Outgoing coach	Date	Reason	Replacement	Previous position
Virginia Tech	Philip Montgomery (interim)	November 17, 2025	Permanent replacement	James Franklin	Penn State head coach
Oklahoma State	Doug Meacham (interim)	November 25, 2025	Permanent replacement	Eric Morris	North Texas head coach
North Texas	Eric Morris	November 25, 2025	Hired by Oklahoma State	Neal Brown	Texas special assistant
Colorado State	Tyson Summers (interim)	November 26, 2025	Permanent replacement	Jim L. Mora	UConn head coach
Oregon State	Robb Akey (interim)	November 28, 2025	Permanent replacement	JaMarcus Shephard	Alabama co-offensive coordinator
Stanford	Frank Reich (interim)	November 28, 2025	Permanent replacement	Tavita Pritchard	Washington Commanders quarterbacks coach
Auburn	D. J. Durkin (interim)	November 30, 2025	Permanent replacement	Alex Golesh	South Florida head coach
Arkansas	Bobby Petrino (interim)	November 30, 2025	Permanent replacement	Ryan Silverfield	Memphis head coach
Florida	Billy Gonzales (interim)	November 30, 2025	Permanent replacement	Jon Sumrall	Tulane head coach
Tulane	Jon Sumrall	November 30, 2025	Hired by Florida	TBD
Michigan State	Jonathan Smith	November 30, 2025	Fired	Pat Fitzgerald	Northwestern head coach
LSU	Frank Wilson (interim)	November 30, 2025	Permanent replacement	Lane Kiffin	Ole Miss head coach
Kentucky	Mark Stoops	November 30, 2025	Fired	Will Stein	Oregon offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
South Florida	Kevin Patrick (interim)	December 3, 2025	Permanent replacement	Brian Hartline	Ohio State offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach
Kansas State	Chris Klieman	December 3, 2025	Retired	Collin Klein	Texas A&M offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
California	Nick Rolovich (interim)	December 5, 2025	Permanent replacement	Tosh Lupoi	Oregon defensive coordinator/linebackers coach
Penn State	Terry Smith (interim)	December 5, 2025	Permanent replacement	Matt Campbell	Iowa State head coach
Iowa State	Matt Campbell	December 5, 2025	Hired by Penn State	Jimmy Rogers	Washington State head coach
Washington State	Jimmy Rogers	December 5, 2025	Hired by Iowa State	TBD

Television viewers and ratings

Top 10 most watched regular season games

All times Eastern. Rankings are from the AP Poll (before 11/4) and CFP Rankings (thereafter).

Rank	Date	Time	Matchup				Network	Viewers (millions)	Location	Significance
1	November 29, 2025	12:00 p.m.	No. 1 Ohio State	27	No. 15 Michigan	9	Fox	18.42	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI	Rivalry, Big Noon Kickoff
2	August 30, 2025	12:00 p.m.	No. 1 Texas	7	No. 3 Ohio State	14		16.62	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	College GameDay, Big Noon Kickoff
3	November 28, 2025	7:30 p.m.	No. 3 Texas A&M	17	No. 16 Texas	27	ABC	13.04	Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium Austin, TX	Rivalry
4	September 13, 2025	3:30 p.m.	No. 6 Georgia	44	No. 15 Tennessee	41		12.58	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN	Rivalry, College GameDay
5	November 29, 2025	7:30 p.m.	No. 10 Alabama	27	Auburn	20		11.31	Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, AL	Rivalry
6	August 31, 2025	7:30 p.m.	No. 6 Notre Dame	24	No. 10 Miami	27		10.80	Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens, FL	Rivalry, Kickoff game (Week 1)
7	August 30, 2025	3:30 p.m.	No. 8 Alabama	17	Florida State	31		10.66	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL
8	November 15, 2025	3:30 p.m.	No. 11 Oklahoma	23	No. 4 Alabama	21		10.48	Saban Field at Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL
9	August 30, 2025	7:30 p.m.	No. 9 LSU	17	No. 4 Clemson	10		10.45	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	Kickoff game (Week 1)
10	November 15, 2025	7:30 p.m.	No. 10 Texas	10	No. 5 Georgia	35		10.43	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA

Conference championship games

All times Eastern. Rankings are from the CFP Rankings.

Rank	Date	Time	Matchup				Network	Viewers (millions)	Conference	Location
	December 5	7:00 p.m.	Troy	14	No. 25 James Madison	31	ESPN		Sun Belt	Bridgeforth Stadium Harrisonburg, Virginia
			Kennesaw State	19	Jacksonville State	15	CBSSN		CUSA	AmFirst Stadium Jacksonville, Alabama
		8:00 pm	No. 24 North Texas	21	No. 20 Tulane	34	ABC		American	Yulman Stadium New Orleans, Louisiana
			UNLV	21	Boise State	38	FOX		MW	Albertsons Stadium Boise, Idaho
	December 6	12:00 p.m.	No. 11 BYU		No. 4 Texas Tech		ABC		Big 12	AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
			Miami (OH)		Western Michigan		ESPN		MAC	Ford Field, Detroit, MI
		4:00 p.m.	No. 3 Georgia		No. 9 Alabama		ABC		SEC	Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA
		8:00 p.m.	Duke		No. 17 Virginia		ABC		ACC	Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
			No. 2 Indiana		No. 1 Ohio State		FOX		Big Ten	Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN

Most watched non-CFP bowl games

All times Eastern. Rankings are from the CFP Rankings.

Rank	Date	Time	Matchup				Network	Viewers (millions)	Game	Location

College Football Playoff games

Rank	Date	Time	Matchup				Network	Viewers (millions)	Game	Location
		8:00 pm (ET)					ABC/ESPN		Non-bowl game (First round)	TBD TBD (Campus site)
	December	12:00 pm (ET)					TNT			TBD TBD (Campus site)
		4:00 pm (ET)								TBD TBD (Campus site)
		8:00 pm (ET)					ABC/ESPN			TBD TBD (Campus site)
	December 31	7:30 pm (ET)					ESPN		Cotton Bowl Classic (Quarterfinals)	AT&T Stadium Arlington, Texas
	January 1	1:00 pm (ET)							2026 Orange Bowl (Quarterfinals)	Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens, Florida
		5:00 pm (ET)							Rose Bowl (Quarterfinals)	Rose Bowl Pasadena, California
		4:00 pm (ET)							Sugar Bowl (Quarterfinals)	Caesars Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana
	January 8	7:30 pm (ET)							Fiesta Bowl (Semifinals)	State Farm Stadium Glendale, Arizona
	January 9								Peach Bowl (Semifinals)	Mercedes-Benz Stadium Atlanta, Georgia
	January 19								College Football Playoff National Championship	Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens, Florida

Television changes

This is the first season of a new television contract for the Big 12 Conference with ESPN, Fox Sports and TNT Sports. ESPN hold the rights to the top four college football games per season, and twelve of the top twenty games, along with the Big 12 Championship Game. TNT Sports sublicense thirteen games from ESPN.

The Pac-12 Conference renewed their media partnership with The CW for the 2025 season, while also agreeing to two-game deals with ESPN and CBS Sports. While The CW will continue to carry majority of the home games for Oregon State and Washington State, ESPN will carry two Oregon State home games and CBS will carry one home game from each school in primetime.

This is the final year of the Mountain West Conference's broadcast agreement with Fox Sports and CBS Sports. The conference has not yet announced a new agreement. Despite being announced as a multi-year deal, the Mountain West did not continue an agreement with TNT Sports from 2024 to air 14 games on TruTV.

See also

• 2025 NCAA Division I FCS football season
• 2025 NCAA Division II football season
• 2025 NCAA Division III football season
• 2025 NAIA football season
• 2025 U Sports football season

External links

Media related to 2025 NCAA Division I FBS football season at Wikimedia Commons