Who’s going to win the College Football Playoff this season? It’s hard to imagine preseason prognostications going much worse than last year, when No. 1 Texas missed the Playoff and No. 2 Penn State and No. 4 Clemson played each other in the Pinstripe Bowl, finishing unranked.Though Ohio State is No. 1 in the AP Top 25 and the coaches poll and owns the best national championship odds of the 138 FBS teams in Austin Mock’s CFP Predictor, it is not the favorite of The Athletic’s college football staff.We polled 31 of our writers and editors for national title, Power 4 championship, Playoff and Heisman Trophy picks, and we also surveyed more than 2,000 readers for their championship picks. Here are the results, plus some bolder predictions.Who will win the national championship?TeamStaffReadersModelNotre Dame41.9%18.9%10.4%Ohio State16.1%17.9%13.5%Oregon16.1%20.8%10.1%Indiana6.5%5.5%9.6%Miami6.5%5.2%7.3%Texas6.5%9.4%6.1%Georgia3.2%8.7%9.2%Texas A&M3.2%0.6%2.1%Alabama0.0%1.3%3.4%Oklahoma0.0%1.3%3.2%LSU0.0%1.1%2.3%Texas Tech0.0%0.5%4.9%Is it finally time for Notre Dame’s 38-year national championship drought to end?The Irish are No. 4 in the preseason AP poll and No. 5 in the coaches poll, but 13 of our 31 staffers surveyed think they’re going to win the title after losing to Ohio State in the championship game in 2024 and being the first team left out last season.Eight teams received at least one vote for the national title from our staff, with Ohio State and Oregon tied for second behind Notre Dame. Our readers prefer Oregon over Notre Dame and Ohio State in a tight battle, followed by Texas and Georgia.Why Notre Dame is the staff's prediction to win the national titleDavid UbbenOur staff, our readers and Mock’s model all like a combination of Notre Dame, Ohio State and Oregon as the three favorites. Let’s turn to The Athletic’s writers and editors for cases for the teams they voted for:Why Notre Dame?It’s all aligning for the Irish in 2026. The defense is stacked, led by All-America cornerback Leonard Moore. They have a Heisman candidate at quarterback in CJ Carr. Head coach Marcus Freeman has experienced the duality of leading the team to the national championship game and narrowly missing the Playoff the past two seasons, the latter fueling a potential revenge tour. And the schedule is very favorable, to the point that missing the CFP would mean something went spectacularly wrong. I’m banking on the opposite.— Justin WilliamsWhy Oregon?With little separation at the top, I’m reverting to my default: Pick a contender that just seems due. That’s Oregon, the best program without a championship. Over the last three years, Dan Lanning’s only five losses came against teams that won or played for the title. The Ducks return standout quarterback Dante Moore with enough talent around him. Coordinator turnover is a concern, but Oregon will shrug that off to win its elusive first ring— Matt BakerWhy Ohio State?Because if you’re a boring human like me, you pick the team with most talent. Sure, there’s an argument the Buckeyes were the most stacked team in the country last year, and if OSU is to win its second title in three years, QB Julian Sayin must improve. The Buckeyes do have maybe the hardest three-game stretch in college football with back-to-back road games at Indiana and USC before hosting Oregon. I’m banking on OSU staying healthy and keeping the Big Ten’s title streak rolling.— Chris KamraniWhy Miami?The Hurricanes have the quarterback, three 1,000-yard weapons on offense (Malachi Toney, Cooper Barkate and Mark Fletcher) and the depth to stop living on vibes and start acting like a national title team. Duke transfer Darian Mensah gives offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson the brains and deep ball to revive the explosiveness Miami lost last year with Carson Beck. Corey Hetherman’s defense should be faster and nastier in Year 2. The offensive line is the big question. If that group holds — and it should, considering that’s head coach Mario Cristobal’s specialty — Miami has everything needed to finish the job it nearly completed in 2025.— Manny NavarroWhy Texas?That’s a great question. Why Texas, indeed? I could have gone any of seven different ways with a national champion, and Oregon and Texas were practically a coin flip at the end. The Longhorns seem to have the most high-ceiling difference makers at the most important positions (Arch Manning, Cam Coleman, Colin Simmons). The narrative around coach Steve Sarkisian is a little odd. He’s 35-8 over the past three seasons with two CFP semifinal appearances. This is looking like Mack Brown 2.0. As with Brown, the program seems to be in a position where if it just keeps doing what it’s doing, at some point it will break through.— Ralph RussoWhy Indiana?If the helmet had a blue-blood logo instead of the IU logo, would the defending champs be down at preseason No. 6? Sure, Curt Cignetti and company lost Heisman winner and No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza, but they also elevated him into that position and could elevate TCU transfer Josh Hoover, too. Both coordinators are back, and don’t overlook the other portal additions, like running back Turbo Richard (Boston College) and receiver Nick Marsh (Michigan State). This is a top-10 most-experienced team, with a leading five members of our preseason All-America teams. With a schedule that has Ohio State and USC at home, avoids Oregon and has no nonconference threat, why not a repeat?— Chris VanniniWhy Georgia?Look, the SEC is going to end its national championship drought eventually, and I’m placing my faith in the conference’s most reliable power to do it. The defense improved as last season progressed and should be even better. Gunner Stockton is a gamer who has stepped up in some big moments. I know there are questions at receiver, but the run game should improve as well. And I think the Bulldogs will have better postseason luck after having to start their backup in the Sugar Bowl two seasons ago and falling victim to an incredible Trinidad Chambliss performance last season.— Antonio MoralesWhy Texas A&M?The Aggies could not outrun the paper tiger allegations at the end of 2025, with performances against Texas and Miami that seemed to answer the “Is Marcel Reed actually a good quarterback?” debate in the negative once and for all. Not so fast, I say. With Rueben Owens II shouldering a lead back load and another rock-solid Mike Elko defense, A&M has the balance and experience to withstand the randomness of tournament football, shedding a lifetime of gut-punches in the process to win its first national title since 1939.— Eric SingleWho will lose in the national title game?TeamStaffOregon41.9%Notre Dame16.1%Georgia16.1%Texas12.9%Ohio State6.5%Miami3.2%Oklahoma3.2%Oregon has long been an easy answer when trying to pick the next first-time national champion after Florida did it in 1996. Then Indiana came out of nowhere to win its first football title last fall.The Ducks came close with national championship losses in 2010 and 2014 and have earned their “best program without a title” status. Five of our staff voters do like Oregon to finally win, but a whopping 13 predict the Ducks to get to Las Vegas and lose again.Notre Dame vs. Oregon is our most common national championship matchup, with six of those nine calling for an Irish win. An All-Big Ten clash between Ohio State and Oregon is the only other championship matchup with more than two votes.