Who is on College Football Playoff selection committee? What Ohio State fans need to know

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Ohio State will find out its place in the College Football Playoff race when the committee releases its first 12-team playoff rankings at 8 p.m. on Nov. 4.

The new 12-team format of the CFP was adopted before the 2024 season by a committee of university presidents. This will be the second year of the new format, with five conference champions and seven at-large teams making the tournament. Unlike in 2024, the top four seeds will go to the four highest-ranked teams as ranked by the CFP selection committee in their final top-25 rankings. Last year, the top four spots went to conference champions.

Under the 2024 system, the Buckeyes were the No. 6 seed, earning them a first-round game against Tennessee. Ohio State is 8-0 in 2025 after beating Penn State 38-14 on Nov. 1 and are expected to earn the top seed in the first committee rankings.

Read below for more information on the committee members and the selection criteria for the CFP.

Who is on the College Football Playoff committee?

Chris Ault: Former head coach and athletic director at the University of Nevada
Chet Gladchuk: Athletics director at the U.S. Naval Academy
Jim Grobe: Former head coach at the Ohio University, Wake Forest and Baylor
Warde Manuel: Chair, Athletics director at the University of Michigan
Randall McDaniel: College and Pro Football Hall of Fame member and former All-American offensive lineman, Arizona State University
Gary Pinkel: Former head coach at the University of Toledo and University of Missouri
Mack Rhoades: Athletics director at Baylor University
Mike Riley: Former college head coach at Oregon State and Nebraska, as well as head coach in the NFL, CFL, WLAF, AAF and USFL
David Sayler: Athletics director at Miami University, OH
Will Shields: College and Pro Football Hall of Fame member and former All-American offensive lineman, University of Nebraska
Kelly Whiteside: Professor in Sports Media and Journalism, Montclair State University; longtime sportswriter, USA Today, Sports Illustrated and Newsday
Carla Williams: Athletics director at the University of Virginia
Hunter Yurachek: Athletics director at the University of Arkansas

How do you get on the College Football Playoff committee?

To be selected for the College Football Committee, a member must have experience in college football, typically as a current or former athletic director, coach, player or prominent member of the media.

How many teams are in the College Football Playoff in 2025?

Twelve teams will make the College Football Playoff in 2025.

How does the College Football Playoff format work?

The five highest-ranked conference champions received automatic bids, followed by the seven-highest ranked teams in the FBS.

According to the CFP website, “The selection committee ranks the teams based on the members’ evaluation of the teams’ performance on the field, using conference championships won, strength of schedule, head-to-head results, and comparison of results against common opponents to decide among teams that are comparable.”

The top four seeds are not guaranteed to be held by conference champions. In 2025, the top seeds will instead go to the four highest-ranked teams, as ranked by the CFP selection committee in the final top 25, regardless of whether they won a conference championship. Last year, you had to win a league title to be assured a position in the top four.

The committee also adopted a strength-of-schedule and “record strength” metric to apply team performance based on schedule difficulty to the rankings.

What is the College Football Playoff schedule?

First round (Dec. 19-20) — on campuses
- Friday, Dec. 19: One game
- Saturday, Dec. 20: Three games
Quarterfinals (Dec. 31-Jan. 1)
- Wednesday, Dec. 31: Cotton Bowl (Arlington, Texas), 7:30 p.m., ESPN
- Thursday, Jan. 1: Orange Bowl (Miami Gardens, Florida), 12 p.m., ESPN
- Thursday, Jan. 1: Rose Bowl (Pasadena, California), 4 p.m., ESPN
- Thursday, Jan. 1: Sugar Bowl (New Orleans, Louisiana), 8 p.m., ESPN
Semifinals (Jan. 8-9)
- Thursday, Jan. 8: Fiesta Bowl (Glendale, Arizona), 7:30 p.m., ESPN
- Friday, Jan. 9: Peach Bowl (Atlanta), 7:30 p.m., ESPN
CFP national championship
- Monday, Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., 7:30 p.m., ESPN

What Bowl Games are in the College Football Playoff?

There are six bowl games in the College Football Playoff during the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the College Football Playoff:

Cotton Bowl (quarterfinal)
Orange Bowl (quarterfinal)
Rose Bowl (quarterfinal)
Sugar Bowl (quarterfinal)
Fiesta Bowl (semifinal)
Peach Bowl (semifinal)

Who is Ohio State football’s projected CFP bracket opponent?

With its projected rank as the No. 1 team, Ohio State football would earn a first-round bye and face the winner of the No. 8 and No. 9 first-round playoff game.

According to NCAA.com, the projected No. 8 seed is Texas Tech, and the projected No. 9 seed is Oregon.

When do the College Football Playoff rankings come out?

The first rankings of the 2025 season will be released at 8 p.m. on Nov. 4.

The official 12-team College Football Playoff field will be unveiled on Dec. 7.

How do I watch the College Football Playoff rankings show?

TV channel: ESPNLivestream: ESPN app, Fubo (free trial)ESPN will broadcast each College Football Playoff rankings show, with the first airing at 8 p.m. Nov 4. Streaming options include the ESPN app (with a TV login) and Fubo, which carries the ESPN family of networks and offers a free trial to new subscribers.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: CFP selection committee members: Who they are, what they do, what to know

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