3 Experts Split on 2026 CFP Champion in 12-Team Bracket Picks
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 27
3 Experts Split on 2026 CFP Champion in 12-Team Bracket Picks
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 27
Summary
Three preseason bracket projections produced three different 2026 College Football Playoff champions: Bruce Feldman picked Notre Dame, Ralph Russo chose Texas and Stewart Mandel backed Indiana.
Notre Dame drew the strongest single endorsement, with Feldman projecting a 15-0 title run over Oregon behind CJ Carr and Marcus Freeman, while Mandel still had the Irish reaching the final.
Russo used his bracket to highlight the revised format, noting true automatic bids for the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC champions plus a top-12 path for Notre Dame that could create unexpected fields.
His scenario included three-loss TCU and Louisville stealing conference titles, while Mandel argued the Big Ten’s recent 9-3 CFP edge and three straight national crowns make Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana safer bets than SEC powers.
Taken together, the picks frame 2026 as a wide-open third year of the 12-team era, with Notre Dame and Miami seen as the main threats to another Big Ten championship.