College Football Realignment

* Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB, and UTSA all left C-USA to join the AAC in 2023.
* SMU left the AAC to join the ACC in 2024.
* Army left independence to join the AAC in 2024.
* Liberty and Sam Houston left C-USA to join the AAC in 2026.
* The AAC plays a 9-game conference schedule with each team playing the other 3 teams in their pod on a yearly basis, while also playing 2 team from each of the other pods each year on a rotating basis.

### Big 12 Conference

* BYU joined the Big 12 in 2023 after previously being independent.
* Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF all left the AAC to join the Big 12 in 2023.
* Oklahoma and Texas left the Big 12 to join the SEC in 2024.
* Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah all left the Pac-12 to join the Big 12 in 2024.
* Boise State, Oregon State, San Diego State, and Washington State left the Mountain West to join the Big 12 in 2025.
* Oklahoma State left the Big 12 to join the SEC in 2026.
* Boston College, Georgia Tech, Louisville, SMU, and Wake Forest joined the Big 12 in 2026 after the dissolution of the ACC.
* The Big Ten plays an 11-game conference schedule with each team playing the other 5 teams in their pod on a yearly basis, and rotating between playing 2 teams from each of the other 3 pods. Each team is also assigned a scheduling partner, for example in a year where Arizona plays BYU and Utah, Arizona State would also play both of those teams.

### Big Ten Conference

* Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington all left the Pac-12 to join the Big Ten in 2024.
* Notre Dame joined the Big Ten in 2026 after being independent in football for all but one season of their existence.
* California, Pittsburgh, Stanford, Syracuse, and Virginia joined the Big Ten in 2026 after the dissolution of the ACC.
* The Big Ten plays an 11-game conference schedule with each team playing the other 5 teams in their pod on a yearly basis, and rotating between playing 2 teams from each of the other 3 pods. Each team is also assigned a scheduling partner, for example in a year where USC plays Illinois and Northwestern, UCLA would also play both of those teams.

### Conference USA

* Marshall, Old Dominion, and Southern Miss left C-USA to join the Sun Belt in 2022.
* Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB, and UTSA all left C-USA to join the AAC in 2023.
* Liberty and New Mexico State joined C-USA in 2023 after previously being independent.
* Jacksonville State and Sam Houston both left the FCS to join C-USA in 2023.
* Kennesaw State left the FCS to join C-USA in 2024.
* UConn, and UMass joined C-USA in 2025 after previously being independent.
* Liberty and Sam Houston left C-USA to join the AAC in 2026.
* Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky left C-USA to join the MAC in 2026.
* Lamar and McNeese left the FCS to join C-USA in 2026.
* C-USA plays a 9-game conference schedule with each team playing all of the other teams in the conference every year.

### Mid-American Conference

* Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky left C-USA to join the MAC in 2026.
* The MAC plays an 8-game conference schedule with each team playing the other 5 teams in their division on a yearly basis, while playing 3 teams from the other division on a rotational basis.

### Mountain West Conference

* The Mountain West added Oregon State and Washington State in 2024 after the dissolution of the Pac-12.
* Boise State, Oregon State, San Diego State, and Washington State all left the Mountain West to join the Big 12 in 2026.
* Cal Poly, Eastern Washington, Sacramento State, and UC Davis all left the FCS to join the Mountain West in 2026.
* The Mountain West plays an 8-game conference schedule with each team playing 3 designated rivals on a yearly basis, and rotating between 5 and of the other 10 teams each season.

#### Designated Rivalries

* Beginning in 2026, each Mountain West was designated three rival teams that they would play every season.
* Teams listed in **bold** denote an out-of-conference rival scheduled every year.

### Southeastern Conference

* Oklahoma and Texas left the Big 12 to join the SEC in 2024.
* Clemson, Florida State, and Miami left the ACC to join the SEC in 2025.
* Oklahoma State left the Big 12 to join the SEC in 2025.
* Duke, North Carolina, NC State and Virginia Tech joined the SEC in 2026 after the dissolution of the ACC.
* The SEC plays an 11-game conference schedule with each team playing the other 5 teams in their pod on a yearly basis, and rotating between playing 2 teams from each of the other 3 pods. Each team is also assigned a scheduling partner, for example in a year where Alabama plays Texas and Texas A&M, Auburn would also play both of those teams.

### Sun Belt Conference

* Marshall, Old Dominion, and Southern Miss left C-USA to join the Sun Belt in 2022.
* James Madison left the FCS to join the Sun Belt in 2022.
* Delaware and Missouri State both left the FCS to join the Sun Belt in 2026.
* The Sun Belt plays a 9-game conference schedule with each team playing the other 3 teams in their pod on a yearly basis, and play a 2 teams from each of the other three pods each year on a rotational basis.

## Football Championship Subdivision

### Big Sky Conference

* Cal Poly, Eastern Washington, Sacramento State, and UC Davis all left the BSC to join the Mountain West in 2026.

### Big South-Ohio Valley Conference

* Hampton and Monmouth both left the Big South to join CAA in 2022.
* Bryant left the NEC to join the Big South in 2022.
* Lindenwood left D-II to join the OVC in 2022.
* Campbell and North Carolina A&T both left the Big South to join the CAA in 2023.
* Murray State left the OVC to join the MVFC in 2023.
* The Big South and Ohio Valley Conferences merged to form a 10-team conference in 2023.
* Western Illinois left the MVFC to join the Big South-OVC in 2024.

### Colonial Athletic Association

* Hampton and Monmouth both left the Big South to join the CAA in 2022.
* Campbell and North Carolina A&T both left the Big South to join the CAA in 2023.
* Delaware left the CAA to join the Sun Belt in 2026.

### Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference

 Howard Bison
 Morgan State Bears
 Norfolk State Spartans
 North Carolina Central Eagles
 South Carolina State Bulldogs

### Missouri Valley Football Conference

* Murray State left the OVC to join the MVFC in 2023.
* Western Illinois left the MVFC to join the Big South-OVC in 2024.
* Missouri State left the MVFC to join the Sun Belt in 2026.

### Northeast Conference

* Stonehill moved up from D-II to join the NEC in 2022.

### Southland Conference

* Lamar left the WAC to join the SLC in 2022.
* Texas A&M-Commerce moved up from D-II to join the SLC in 2022.
* Lamar and McNeese left the SLC to join C-USA in 2026.

 Incarnate Word Cardinals
 Nicholls Colonels
 Northwestern State Demons
 Southeastern Louisiana Lions
 Texas A&M-Commerce Lions

### United Athletic Conference

* The ASUN Conference and Western Athletic Conference merged in 2023 to make a nine-team conference called the United Athletic Conference.
* West Georgia moved up from D-II to join the UAC in 2024.
* Texas-Rio Grande Valley started a football program in 2025 and subsequently joined the UAC making it a 14-team conference.
* Florida Tech, Valdosta State, West Florida all moved up from D-II to join the UAC in 2025.

## Playoff Expansion

### 12-Team Playoff (2024-2025)

Beginning in 2024, the College Football Playoff expanded from 4 teams to 12 teams, with the rules being as follows:

* The six highest-ranked conference champions get automatic playoff berths
* The next six highest-ranked teams get at-large bids.
* First-round byes go to the top four conference champs
* First-round games are played at the better seed’s home stadium, and quarterfinals and semifinals are played in a rotation of the New Year's Six bowls.

### 24-Team Playoff (2026 and beyond)

Beginning in 2026, ESPN and the College Football Playoff committee decided to once again expand the playoff, the reasoning behind this expansion being the FBS/FCS merger. The rules for the 24-team playoff are as follows:

* All 8 conference champions get automatic bids.
* The next 16 highest-ranked teams get at-large bids.
* The top eight seeds get first-round byes, with the top four conference champions getting the top four seeds, followed by the next four highest-ranked teams getting the 5-8 seeds.
* The first and second-round games are played at a rotation of bowl sites, quarterfinal and semifinal games are still played in a rotation of the New Year's Six bowls.

## Bowl Game Sites

### College Football Playoff sites

#### First/Second Round Game Sites

* These 16 bowl games are rotated between the first and second rounds of the 24-team College Football Playoff.

#### Quarterfinal/Semifinal Game Sites

 Fiesta Bowl
 Orange Bowl
 Peach Bowl
 Rose Bowl
 Sugar Bowl

#### Eligible National Championship Sites

* Not all sites will necessarily host the National Championship Game, but all sites are among those that meet the 65,000-seat stadium minimum to be considered.