The College Football Playoff rolls along this week as we enter the semifinal round and inch ever closer toward crowning a national champion for the 2024 season. No. 5 seed Texas travels to play 8-seed Ohio State in a highly anticipated Cotton Bowl filled with storylines on Friday, while the day prior on the other side of the bracket, 6-seed Penn State prepares to battle with 7-seed Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl fresh off the upset of Georgia.
The winners of the matchups will face off in the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship, which takes place on Monday, Jan. 20 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. None of the final four teams have won a national championship since 2014. Penn State and Notre Dame have not won national championships in the BCS or CFP era.
2024-25 College Football Playoff schedule
All times Eastern
Semifinals
Thursday, Jan. 9
- Orange Bowl -- (7) Notre Dame vs. (6) Penn State: 7:30 p.m. | ESPN
Hard Rock Stadium -- Miami Gardens, Fla.
Friday, Jan. 10
- Cotton Bowl -- (8) Ohio State vs. (5) Texas: 7:30 p.m. | ESPN
AT&T Stadium -- Arlington, Texas
National Championship
Monday, Jan. 20
- 7:30 p.m. | ESPN
Mercedes-Benz Stadium -- Atlanta
2024-25 College Football Playoff scores
First round
- (7) Notre Dame 27, (10) Indiana 17 | Recap
Notre Dame Stadium -- South Bend, Indiana - (6) Penn State 38, (11) SMU 10 | Recap
Beaver Stadium -- State College, Pennsylvania - (5) Texas 38, (12) Clemson 24 | Recap
Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium -- Austin, Texas - (8) Ohio State 42, (9) Tennessee 17 | Recap Ohio Stadium -- Columbus, Ohio
Quarterfinals
- Fiesta Bowl -- (6) Penn State 31, (3) Boise State 14 | Recap
State Farm Stadium -- Glendale, Ariz. - Peach Bowl -- (5) Texas 39, (4) Arizona State 31 | Recap
Mercedes-Benz Stadium -- Atlanta - Rose Bowl -- (8) Ohio State 41, (1) Oregon 21 | Recap
Rose Bowl -- Pasadena, Calif. - Sugar Bowl -- (7) Notre Dame 23, (2) Georgia 10 | Recap
Caesars Superdome -- New Orleans