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College Football Playoff Bracket Pools
One bracket, all the way to the title.
Have your group predict the entire College Football Playoff before the first game. Each entry picks all 11 winners, including the national champion. Correct picks earn points, and the highest total wins. You choose how much each round is worth.
Predict all 11 games, including the champion, before the playoff starts. Give correct picks equal points or make later rounds worth more.
$1 per entry. Nothing upfront.
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Already have pool rules? Paste them in. Still figuring it out? Tell us what you have in mind.No account needed.
Tell us about itSet up your bracket pool
How much should later rounds be worth?
The 12-team bracket has four first-round games, four quarterfinals, two semifinals, and a championship. Your point values decide how much a late win can change the standings.
One point per correct pick.
Every game has the same value. A perfect bracket scores 11 points, and the championship pick counts just as much as a first-round winner.
Increase points by round.
A 1/2/4/8 schedule makes the champion worth eight points. The first round offers four points in total; each later round offers eight. Use your own values if you want a different balance.
Your pool’s rules
Bracket rules for your group.
Set your scoring, entry limits, and tiebreakers for a bracket that locks upfront.
Bracket and entries
- Full bracket
- Predict all 11 games in the 12-team field before the first kickoff, following each entry’s chosen winners through the championship.
- Fixed bracket
- Teams stay on their assigned paths. The CFP does not reseed after a round, even when a lower-seeded team advances.
- First-round byes
- Seeds 1 through 4 enter in the quarterfinals. A bye is not a game pick and earns no win points.
- Entries per person
- Allow one bracket each or set a limit on multiple entries.
- Starting later
- Run a separate bracket from the quarterfinals or semifinals. Include only the teams and games remaining when that pool starts.
Scoring
- Points by round
- Use equal points for every correct pick or increase values in later rounds, such as 1/2/4/8. Custom round values are another option.
- Credit for advancement
- Award points for a correctly picked team winning that round, even if its actual opponent differs from the entry’s prediction.
- Upset bonuses
- Optionally add the winning underdog’s seed or the difference between the teams’ seeds. Choose the formula and the rounds where it applies.
- Incorrect picks
- A wrong pick earns no points. An eliminated team cannot score later, but other correct picks and points already earned still count.
- Final standings
- Add the points from every included round. Picking the champion does not automatically beat an entry with a higher total.
Deadlines and tiebreakers
- Bracket deadline
- Lock every pick and the tiebreaker before the first included game. Members can revise their predictions until then.
- Incomplete entries
- Require a complete bracket, or let blank selections earn zero points under your pool’s rules.
- Championship total
- Use a predicted combined championship score to break ties, comparing distance from the actual total, including overtime.
- Additional tiebreakers
- With weighted rounds, most correct picks can separate tied entries. Set the order and the outcome if a tie remains.
- Late entries
- Close entry at the deadline or accept entries with zero credit for games already started. Keep locked selections unchanged.
Visibility and commissioner controls
- Seeing other picks
- Reveal selections after the applicable deadline.
- Commissioner picks
- Enter and fix picks for a member, or turn that off
- Commissioner visibility
- Always off. Nobody sees a pick before it locks, you included
- Rules text
- A rules page generated from your settings, plus a note in your own words
- Audit markers
- Commissioner picks are flagged “C”.
- Entry management
- Keep track of who has joined, how many entries they have, and who still owes their dues.
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Your house rules
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Your pool.
Your people.
Your members won’t be added to a marketing list or shown sportsbook promotions. You decide who joins.
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Football pool pricing
$1 per entry. Nothing upfront.
Pay only for the entries you keep.
- No credit card to start
- No minimum charge
- Set up before inviting anyone
Before the bracket locks.
The details that matter for a CFP bracket.
Does the CFP reseed like the NFL playoffs?
No. The bracket stays fixed. For example, the No. 1 seed faces the winner of the 8 vs. 9 first-round game. An upset elsewhere does not change that path.
Do members pick again after each round?
Not in a full bracket pool. Their original predictions stay in place. For new picks based on the actual matchups each round, use CFP pick’em. Explore CFP Pick’em.
What happens if someone’s champion loses early?
That team stops earning points, including any future championship points. The entry keeps its earlier points and can still score with other teams. Whether it can win depends on the scoring and the other brackets.
Why are there 11 picks for 12 teams?
Four teams have first-round byes. The other eight play four games, followed by four quarterfinals, two semifinals, and one championship. Byes are not picks.
Can we include the other bowl games?
A CFP bracket follows advancement toward the championship. To pick a broader list of bowl and playoff games, use a bowl pick’em or confidence pool. Compare bowl pool formats.
What does hosting cost?
$1 for each entry you keep in the new pool, with nothing upfront and no minimum. The new pool is billed separately.
For your group
Let’s get your CFP bracket pool ready.
Send your scoring system and any house rules. If your group already uses a bracket or spreadsheet, we can start there.