This has been quite the offseason for Notre Dame and coach Marcus Freeman. The College Football Playoff's decision to alter the seeding and first-round bye process for the 2025 season continues a string of wins for the Fighting Irish that includes an elite signing haul and the news of a 12-year partnership with Clemson for a future series that strengthens their stance as an independent program.

The College Football Playoff will go to a more straightforward way of filling the bracket next season, announcing Thursday that it will place teams strictly on where they are ranked instead of moving pieces around to reward conference champions.

After one year of the College Football Playoff fielding a 12-team bracket, a significant change is coming to the postseason for the 2025 season. On Thursday, the College Football Playoff announced it will give the four highest-ranked teams according to the selection committee's final rankings a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff with no requirement to be a conference champion.