CBS Sports projects 12-team College Football Playoff field ahead of Week 4

It’s still a year away, but the 12-team College Football Playoff is coming soon to a postseason near you. There are still questions about what it will look like, though, and CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm tried to project what this year’s CFP would look like if it had 12 teams.

The 2024 season will be the first under the new format. Instead of four teams making the field, the six highest-ranked conference champions and six at-large teams will all punch their tickets to the CFP. Four teams will receive a bye and the other eight will play at campus sites. That not only means more teams will have a shot at a national championship, but some fun matchups could be in the cards on the biggest stage in the game.

Based on CBS Sports’ projections, the 12-team College Football Playoff would have fans all over the country getting their popcorn ready. The top four, however, are likely the favorites to make the CFP this year under the current format.

No. 1 Georgia | Bye

Georgia came into the 2023 season searching for a third straight championship, and the Bulldogs are in prime position to do just that. They bring a perfect 3-0 record into this week’s matchup against UAB, which will be one final tune-up before diving all the way back into SEC play.

Last week’s game wasn’t easy for the Bulldogs. South Carolina took a lead into halftime before UGA bounced back in the second half to come away with the 24-14 victory to stay undefeated — and atop the rankings.

No. 2 Michigan | Bye

After a self-imposed three-game suspension, Jim Harbaugh will be back on the sidelines this week against Rutgers. He returns as Michigan is now 3-0 on the season entering conference play and got some big games out of quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

The Wolverines won their first three games by an average of 26 points and McCarthy didn’t throw an interception until their most recent game against Bowling Green. Sitting at No. 2 in the AP Top 25 and CBS Sports’ projected 12-team College Football Playoff field, Michigan has an opportunity to return to the Big Ten Championship and the CFP for the third straight year.

No. 3 Florida State | Bye

Florida State added to an already talented roster with multiple impressive names from the transfer portal. Those additions have paid off so far as the Seminoles take a 3-0 record into Week 4 after sneaking out a victory over Boston College last week.

Jordan Travis continues to improve his Heisman Trophy case and will look to add to his resume this week against Clemson. It’s one of the biggest games of the weekend, and FSU will try to cement its status as a top-four team with a victory.

No. 4 Texas | Bye

Texas jumped into the top four of the AP poll after its Week 2 over Alabama and didn’t move after last week’s victory over Wyoming. Quinn Ewers is another Heisman favorite as the Longhorns dive into Big 12 play, and their CFP hopes are alive and well in the early going.

The Longhorns have been impressive on both sides of the ball so far, and they’ve proven why they were the preseason favorite in the Big 12. While they’re hanging on to the fourth spot in the current CFP format, they’d be squarely in the mix under a 12-team College Football Playoff model, according to CBS Sports.

No. 12 Tulane at No. 5 USC | Winner plays Texas

The first projected campus-site matchup in a 12-team College Football Playoff model would be a rematch of last year’s Cotton Bowl. USC had a 28-14 lead at halftime, but Tulane battled back to pull off the 46-45 come-from-behind victory.

The Trojans sprinted to a 3-0 record this year behind strong play from Heisman favorite Caleb Williams. As for the Green Wave, they’re gearing up for a run at a conference title in the new-look American Athletic Conference even though quarterback Michael Pratt missed last week’s game against Ole Miss due to injury.

No. 11 Utah at No. 6 Ohio State | Winner plays Florida State

Another intriguing projection would have Utah taking on Ohio State at The Horseshoe. The two-time reigning Pac-12 champion Utes are also playing well this year even without quarterback Cameron Rising, and the Buckeyes have also gotten off to a hot start while resolving their quarterback situation.

Kyle McCord is now Ohio State’s starting quarterback and looked the part against Western Kentucky with 318 yards and four touchdowns on an efficient 19-of-23 passing. He’ll face his biggest test yet, though, against Notre Dame this week in South Bend. As for Utah, Rising appears to be nearing a return as the Utes welcome UCLA on Saturday.

No. 10 Oregon at No. 7 Penn State | Winner plays Michigan

Penn State is looking to play spoiler in the Big Ten East and maybe — just maybe — sneak into the CFP. In the projected 12-team College Football Playoff, though, the Nittany Lions wouldn’t necessarily need a conference championship series appearance to seal a home matchup with future conference foe Oregon.

Drew Allar has looked solid at quarterback for Penn State so far in an offense with one of the best backfields in the conference in Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. As for Oregon, the Ducks are led by Heisman hopeful Bo Nix and will try to knock off the talk of college football when they welcome Colorado to Eugene on Saturday.

No. 9 Notre Dame at No. 8 Washington | Winner plays Georgia

Notre Dame has only made one CFP appearance since its inception in 2014, but the Fighting Irish are right in the middle of the projected 12-team College Football Playoff. CBS Sports has Sam Hartman and Co. squaring off with Washington and its high-powered offense in its mock.

Hartman has been a revelation, to say the least, in South Bend as he leads the nation in passing touchdowns through four games. The Huskies, however, possess one of the country’s top offenses with passing yards leader Michael Penix Jr. calling the shots once again.

Although the four-team CFP is still around in 2023, it’s still fun to wonder what the landscape would look like if the 12-team College Football Playoff was coming this year. There’s still a lot of football to be played, though, and the top of these rankings could change as teams play pivotal conference matchups the rest of the way.