ESPN Analysts Reveal 2024 College Football Playoff Picks
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - JANUARY 10: The National Championship trophy is displayed after the Georgia Bulldogs defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 33-18 in the 2022 CFP National Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium on January 10, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The upcoming season will mark the final four-team College Football Playoff before expanding to 12.
With multiple months to spare, eight ESPN analysts predicted which teams will send off the current format. They're mostly expecting the usual suspects to receive an elusive invite.
Every participant besides David M. Hale picked Georgia to return for a chance at a three-peat. Seven analysts (excluding Bill Connelly) have Alabama getting back to the playoff picture.
Six analysts believe USC will make its first CFP appearance. Michigan got five picks for its third straight trip, and Ohio State received four nods. (Connelly picked both Big Ten rivals to make the cut again.)
Adam Rittenberg devoted a spot to Washington, and Hale and Connelly also went against the grain by picking Oregon
"With Bo Nix returning, another strong recruiting class arriving, only one unit facing a rebuild (an admittedly stout offensive line), and a schedule that requires USC to visit Eugene, the Ducks might need only to split tough road games at Washington and Utah to be in strong CFP shape in the home stretch," Connelly wrote of Oregon.
Meanwhile, Hale explained his Georgia snub by asserting that Nick Saban has "paid attention to the continual refrain that Georgia has surpassed the Tide as the nation's premier program."
There's a long way to go before finding out which teams usher in 2024 with New Year's Day semifinal showdowns.
