Starting in the upcoming season, the top four teams will receive first-round byes in the college football playoffs, a departure from the previous model that favored the highest-ranked conference champions.
The new format: The top 4 seeds will be determined purely by overall rankings, not conference titles. The five highest-ranked conference champions are assured playoff berths, even if ranked outside the top 12. And teams seeded 5 through 12 will compete in the first round, with higher seeds hosting the games.
With the new model approved, many are predicting the 2025 playoffs and champion using the new bracket. Andy Staples of On3 made a prediction of his own and the Miami Hurricanes found their way into his bracket at No. 11.
"If the hire of defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman and an infusion of transfer portal talent on that side of the ball works, Miami has an excellent chance to be here. I considered the Hurricanes, Illinois and Indiana — yes, the Hoosiers are still good — for this spot. Basically, it came down to who I thought would beat another CFP-caliber team. Miami beating Notre Dame in its season opener felt more likely than Illinois beating Ohio State or Indiana beating Oregon or Penn State. In this projection, the Hurricanes beat the Fighting Irish and then lost to Florida and then to Clemson in the ACC title game. (Given how the committee protected title game losers last year, it’s possible a team in this situation could drop another regular-season game.)"Andy Staples
In his reasoning, Staples chooses Miami over other non conference champions such as Illinois and Indiana. He has Miami winning their opener against Notre Dame but losing to Florida during the regular season and falling to Clemson in the ACC title game. He also mentions that Miami could even have room for one more regular season loss.
Staples has Alabama going 11-1 in the regular season and losing in the SEC championship game to Texas. He projects Ty Simpson to be the Tide's starting QB and has them moving on to the quarterfinals to play Notre Dame. Staples has an all-SEC championship matchup with Georgia losing to Texas. In his bracket, Clemson is ranked No. 4 by the committee after they win the ACC championship game.