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Who's in CFP quarterfinals? Updated bracket, scores for College Football Playoff
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- Who's in CFP quarterfinals? Updated bracket, scores for College Football Playoff
With the road to Miami officially underway, the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket has taken its first round of cuts.
Behind a 34-7 scoring run beginning in the second quarter, Ty Simpson and No. 9 seed Alabama became the first team to advance to the quarterfinal round of the CFP with a 34-24 win over No. 8 seed Oklahoma on Friday, Dec. 19.
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Carson Beck and No. 10 seed Miami claimed the second spot with a 10-3 upset over Marcel Reed and No. 7 seed Texas A&M . In a game that did not feature a ton of offense, the Hurricanes secured their first-ever CFP win with a game-sealing interception from true freshman defensive back Bryce Fitzgerald in the winding seconds of the fourth quarter.
REQUIRED READING: How will CFP play out? Predicting every round of College Football Playoff
In Game 2 of the Saturday triple-header, No. 6 seed Mississippi rolled past No. 11 seed Tulane 41-10 in Oxford in what was the Rebels' first game following Lane Kiffin's departure to LSU . Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss finished with three combined touchdown scores while throwing for 282 yards.
The final spot in the quarterfinals will be claimed by No. 5 seed Oregon behind a five-touchdown night from Dante Moore . The Ducks defeated No. 12 seed James Madison 51-34 in Eugene despite a valiant effort from the Dukes, who outscored Oregon 28-17 in the second half.
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Action in the CFP quarterfinals gets underway on New Year's Eve at 7:30 p.m. ET with the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium between No. 2 Ohio State and Miami. Here's what to know on who has advanced to the CFP quarterfinals, including an updated look at the bracket and the full CFP schedule:
Who's in CFP quarterfinals?
With their top-four seedings on Selection Sunday, No. 1 Indiana, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Georgia and No. 4 Texas Tech were the first four teams sent to the quarterfinal round of the 2025-26 College Football Playoff.
Here's a full look at who has advanced to the CFP quarterfinals:
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No. 1 Indiana
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No. 2 Ohio State
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No. 3 Georgia
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No. 4 Texas Tech
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No. 5 Oregon
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No. 6 Ole Miss
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No. 9 Alabama
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No. 10 Miami
Updated CFP bracket
The CFP format is a single-game elimination. The CFP selection committee straight-seeded the 2025-26 CFP bracket this season, meaning the top four teams from the final CFP top 25 rankings reveal were given the top four seeds. The 12-team CFP bracket has five of the highest-ranked conference champions and seven at-large teams.
Here's an updated look the 12-team CFP bracket:
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No. 1 Indiana
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No. 2 Ohio State
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No. 3 Georgia
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No. 4 Texas Tech
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No. 5 Oregon
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No. 6 Ole Miss
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No. 7 Texas A&M -
No. 8 Oklahoma -
No. 9 Alabama
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No. 10 Miami
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No. 11 Tulane -
No. 12James Madison
CFP schedule 2025-26
Here's a full breakdown of the 2025-26 College Football Playoff bracket schedule:
CFP first-round (On campus sites)
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Friday, Dec. 19
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Saturday, Dec. 20
CFP quarterfinals
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Wednesday, Dec. 31
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Cotton Bowl (Game 5): No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 10 Miami | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN ( Fubo )
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CFP semifinals
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Thursday, Jan. 8
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Fiesta Bowl (Game 9): Winner of Cotton Bowl vs. Winner of Sugar Bowl | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN ( Fubo )
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Friday, Jan. 9
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Peach Bowl (Game 10): Winner of Rose Bowl vs. Winner of Orange Bowl | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN ( Fubo )
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CFP championship game
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Monday, Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium (Game 11, Miami): 7:30 p.m. ET
How to watch College Football Playoff? TV channel, streaming options
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TV channel: ABC | ESPN | TNT | truTV
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Livestream: ESPN app | Fubo (free trial) | Sling TV
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The majority of the 2025-25 College Football Playoff will be broadcast nationally across several channels of the ESPN family of networks: ABC and ESPN. There will be two CFP first-round games — No. 5 Oregon vs. No. 12 James Madison and No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 11 Tulane — airing on TNT and truTV, as part of TNT Sports/Warner Bros. Discovery's deal with ESPN to sublicense CFP games.
For the games that will appear on the ESPN family of networks, streaming options include the ESPN app (with a TV login) and Fubo, which carries both ABC and ESPN and offers a free trial to new subscribers. For the pair of games that will be on TNT and truTV, a streaming option is Sling TV.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who's in CFP quarterfinals? Updated bracket, scores
