College Football Playoff Selection Show: Time, how to watch and stream

OXFORD, Miss. — The wait is finally almost over. After months of chaos, drama, and scoreboard watching, college football fans everywhere will soon find out if their team did enough to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff. The Ole Miss Rebels are securely in after finishing the season with an 11-1 record, the best in school history. Head coach Pete Golding’s team was ranked No. 6 in the last rankings.

Because of their expected position in today’s final rankings, the Rebs are almost a lock to earn a host bid in the CFP, meaning there will be a first-round game at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Dec. 19 or Dec. 20.

Where are the Rebels expected to land?

If Ole Miss remains at No. 6, as is widely thought, the Rebels would be expected to host the highest-ranked opponent of two automatic qualifiers. That looks like it would be Tulane (11-2) in what would be a rematch from earlier this season.

The winner of that No. 6 vs. No. 11 game will face the No. 3 seed in the quarterfinals, and that No. 3 seed could be Georgia, Ohio State, or Texas Tech, depending on today’s rankings. Again, this is all fluid based on the CFP Committee’s rankings released later today.

Here’s everything Rebel Nation needs to know ahead of today’s CFP Selection Show — including when it airs and how to watch.

When Will the College Football Playoff Field Be Announced?

The final CFP rankings drop today, Sunday, Dec. 7, when the selection committee releases the full 12-team bracket and the final Top 25. You can catch the entire reveal live on ESPN or the ESPN app.

How to Watch the CFP Selection Show

Date: Sunday, Dec. 7
Time: 11:00 a.m. – 2 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN
Streaming: ESPN app

ESPN will air the rankings reveal and full bracket analysis live, including reaction from campuses across the country as teams learn their postseason fate.

How the 12-Team College Football Playoff Works

This is just the second year of the expanded 12-team playoff, and it’s already reshaping the sport. With automatic bids, byes, and on-campus playoff games, the road to the national championship looks very different now — and a whole lot more exciting.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the format:

• The five conference champions ranked highest by the selection committee are automatically in.
• The remaining seven teams are the next seven highest-ranked schools.
• The four highest-ranked teams (no matter where they finished in their conferences) will be seeded No. 1-4 and receive first-round byes. This is new for the 2025-26 season, as last year, the four highest-ranked conference champions received the top four seeds and byes.
• The teams seeded No. 5-12 will play in the first round, with the higher seeds hosting (No. 12 at No. 5, No. 11 at No. 6, No. 10 at No. 7 and No. 9 at No. 8.)
• There will be no re-seeding once the bracket is announced on Dec. 7.

First-Round Playoff Games Are On Campus

Seeds No. 5–12 will square off in the opening round, and the higher seed hosts. Here are those pairings:

• No. 12 at No. 5

• No. 11 at No. 6

• No. 10 at No. 7

• No. 9 at No. 8

College Football Playoff bracket 2025-26 dates

Here are the dates of the college football playoffs:

• First round: Dec. 19 and 20
• Quarterfinals: Dec. 31 and Jan. 1
• Semifinals: Jan. 8 and 9
• National championship: Jan. 19

What’s Next

Stay tuned for a wrap-up of the final rankings and complete breakdown of who the Rebels’ play and when.