College Football Playoff 2026-27 schedule released; fans react negatively
By Andrew Olson
Published:
As we move closer toward the 2026 college football season, the College Football Playoff has released the schedule for the upcoming CFP. The Playoff will run from Dec. 18, 2026, to Jan. 25, 2027.
The CFP, which will be 12 teams again for the upcoming season, starts with 4 on-campus first-round games on Dec. 18 and 19. Two of those games will be broadcast on ESPN, including 1 on ABC. The other two will be sublicensed broadcasts airing on TNT, truTV and HBO Max (streaming).
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Quarterfinals in the Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, Cotton Bowl and Rose Bowl will be played on Dec. 30 and Jan. 1. At this time, the Fiesta Bowl is set to be the Dec. 30 game and air on TNT/truTV/HBO Max. The first Jan. 1 CFP game with a noon kickoff will also be broadcast on TNT/truTV/HBO Max.
The 4 p.m. ET Jan. 1 bowl game will be broadcast on ABC and ESPN. The fourth quarterfinal, with an 8 p.m. ET kick, will be broadcast on ESPN.
Semifinals are set to be played in the Orange Bowl and Sugar Bowl about 2 weeks after the quarterfinals. The Orange Bowl will be broadcast on TNT/truTV/HBO Max on Jan. 14 at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Sugar Bowl will be broadcast on ABC and ESPN, Jan. 15 at 7:30 p.m. ET.
The national championship is set to be played in Las Vegas on Jan. 25. It is set to be broadcast on ABC and ESPN at 7:30 p.m. ET.
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Reaction to the news on social media was overwhelmingly negative. College football fans are not excited about a Playoff stretching out over a month, with long layoffs between each round. Here’s a small sample of what’s being said on social media:
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Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
