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College football overtime rules: What to know about OT, 2-point conversions, more
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- College football overtime rules: What to know about OT, 2-point conversions, more
College football fans get a little extra giddy when commentators announce, "free football" — otherwise known as overtime.
But there's nothing simple about college football overtime rules. This is why, before every overtime, broadcasters have a graphic ready with an explainer on rules for college football OT, the rules for which differ from the NFL.
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Three college football games in Week 3 went to overtime, including the highly anticipated matchup between Georgia and Tennessee . The Bulldogs pulled out the 44-41 overtime win to stave off the upset attempt from the Vols.
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As the season wears on, more games with a lot on the line for the 12-team College Football Playoff could be overtime games. Here's what you need to know about college football's overtime rules and structure:
College football overtime rules
NFL regular-season games can end in ties. The same is not true in college football.
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That has not always been the case for the sport. The first college football game was played in 1869, but it wasn't until 1995 that the overtime period was implemented. Before that, if a game was tied after regulation, the game would go down as a tie.
At the end of the 1995 season, the overtime period was added for bowl games. With the NCAA satisfied with the results, the rule was added for all games ahead of the 1996 season.
While overtime still has the potential to go to multiple periods, recent rules changes have made for a more streamlined model to keep games from played in perpetuity.
Each team is guaranteed one possession in the overtime format. However, there are no kickoffs and returns. A team's drive automatically starts at the opposing team's 25-yard line, allowing teams to potentially kick a 43-yard field goal if they fail to gain a single yard on three downs.
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The team with the ball first can either score a touchdown, field goal or fail to score. The opposing team can then match the scoring opportunity, or have the chance to win with a touchdown or field goal, depending on the scoring of the opposition.
Before overtime, the teams' captains meet at midfield for a coin flip ― akin to the one at the beginning of the game. The winner of the coin toss gets to decide whether they want to start on offense or defense, or which end of the field to defend.
Teams generally elect to start overtime on defense, so the offense will know how many points are needed to be scored to either win the game outright or extend it to another overtime period.
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It is in the second overtime where the rules begin to change for college football.
If the game is tied after the first overtime, teams once again get one possession each, with the order of possessions flipped from the previous OT period (the team that was on offense first is now on defense, and vice versa). However, unlike the first overtime period, teams no longer can kick a point-after attempt after a touchdown. They must instead attempt a 2-point conversion.
College football's third overtime is when things become even more interesting — and potentially chaotic. If the game is tied after two overtime periods, teams begin alternating 2-point conversion attempts until one team successfully converts the try and the other fails. Each alternating 2-point conversion attempt counts its own overtime period.
Before 2021, the alternating 2-point conversions did not start until the fifth overtime. The new format was introduced ahead of the 2019 season and was widely viewed as a response to Texas A&M's 74-72 victory over LSU after seven overtimes on Nov. 24, 2018.
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Illinois and Penn State tested the new rule in the very first year, with the Fighting Illini pulling off a 20-18 nine-overtime win over the Nittany Lions on Oct. 23, 2021.
Last season, Georgia held off a major upset with an eight-overtime, 34-32 win over rival Georgia Tech Nov. 30, 2024.
How long is college football overtime?
Unlike the NFL ― which has a single 10-minute overtime period ― there is no game clock in overtime for college football. Teams trade possessions in a period until one team finishes with more points than the other.
Teams, however, must still abide by the play clock, or be penalized for a delay of game.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: College football overtime rules: How OT, 2-point conversions work
