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2021’s teams most likely to make first College Football Playoff appearance

By John Scimeca

AMES, IA - OCTOBER 10: Tight end Charlie Kolar #88 of the Iowa State Cyclones is forced out of bounds by defensive back Eric Monroe #11 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders, and defensive back Alex Hogan #27 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the first half of the play at Jack Trice Stadium on October 10, 2020 in Ames, Iowa. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images)
AMES, IA - OCTOBER 10: Tight end Charlie Kolar #88 of the Iowa State Cyclones is forced out of bounds by defensive back Eric Monroe #11 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders, and defensive back Alex Hogan #27 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the first half of the play at Jack Trice Stadium on October 10, 2020 in Ames, Iowa. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images) /
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As we enter the eighth season of the revamped, four-team College Football Playoff, it’s become pretty clear that it’s an exclusive club. Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, and Oklahoma have grabbed the lion’s share of bids as the top teams in college football who get a chance to play for the national championship in each of the past few seasons.

In total, 11 teams have made at least one CFP appearance. The previous four schools have made it at least four times each since 2014 and Notre Dame has made two appearances. Six more teams have made it just once: LSU, Oregon, Georgia, Florida State, Michigan State, and Washington. These schools represent the five power conferences of FBS Division I college football and have a general consensus that they were one of the nation’s four best teams from their respective season. The Tigers, in their only CFP showing two years ago, ran away with the 2019 national title behind quarterback Joe Burrow.

These five teams, through a mixture of results and circumstance, have the best shot to earn their first trip to the College Football Playoff this season.

Last season’s CFP marked the first time that a team did not make its first appearance. Notre Dame, in its second time around, lost in the semifinals to Alabama en route to another Crimson Tide national title. Clemson, in its sixth appearance, lost to Ohio State in the other semifinal — and the Buckeyes were in their fourth CFP.

The CFP is an elite, exclusive club that has been dominated by a handful of teams, and hopefully some new blood will inject more interest in the national title race that’s starting to become awfully predictable each year.

Here are the five teams that have the best chance to reach their first CFP for the 2021 season:

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