The CFP Board of Managers goes to 12 team playoff format in 2026
- Thread starter Nittany.Lion
- Start date
So Notre Dame will get an automatic spot, promptly to get throttled annually. Sound about right?
Don't like 12, should be 8 or 16. With 12, some teams will get byes and I would consider that as an advantage.
Post your thoughts.
Post your thoughts.
I would think 4 byes in the 1st round with 4 games, then 4 games in the second round
As soon as you see the word "ranked" you know there is eye test ****.
Might want to change your subject line. NCAA had nothing to do with this.
Those involved are college presidents and conference commissioners, same folks who brought you the current regime. Put it this way: with enough iterations it might work.
That's encouraging, reduces the likelihood of showing first round games played in half-empty stadiums
Perhaps. If I'm understanding it correctly though, only conference champions can get a bye so they'd play in the first round games if they make it.
If seeds 5,6,7,8 beat seeds 9,10,11,12 they have some experience and confidence in the playoff that might be useful in the next round. I think itās likely that one winner from the first round will win in the second every year on average. I think it will be more interesting. I wish it would start sooner.
I don't like 12 either. I think 16 and include all D1A champions. I have posted this in another thread but thought I'd get it in here too.
All eleven division 1a champions get an automatic bid and then the five highest ranked teams that are not a conference champion. Seed the teams and start the first week of December with the higher seeded team playing in their home stadium to guarantee a sell out for all games. Eight games week one, four games week two and two games week three. The school payout will depend on how far that school's team advanced. Each win gets a bigger piece of the pie. Have the championship game on at 5pm EST on New Years day. Have it rotate with the traditional New Years day bowls. I think you would then have a true champion that would be hard to dispute their legitimacy.
I'd be surprised if there were much financial incentive for performance in the playoff. As it stands, each team (more accurately its conference) in the semis gets $6mm and nothing for making the championship. That's about 10% of what each Power 5 conference gets from the CFP, whether it has a team in the playoffs or not. Expect to see something similar, on order of magnitude, for the new regime.
Would the losers of the first round (on campus games) still be eligible for bowl games? Would result in a myriad of opt-outs, but just curious what they are thinking.
I'm still sticking with my model to limit the number of teams in each conference, split the conferences into regional concerns, with the winner of each making the playoff, and have enough spots left over for "wild card" squads to let a select few conference non-winners make it in. So maybe get up to 130 FBS schools, split them into 10 conferences of 13 teams each, by region (you only play conference teams during the season). 10 conference winners get the top 10 seeds and 6 wildcards round out the 16 team field. I like letting the little guys have a chance.
With all respect, they don't care about fairness. All they care about is money. That's why this will happen by 2024. The tweaks will come after they try to figure out where the money goes.
I never thought about that - great point. I imagine there would be little incentive for the players and coaches to go play in another meaningless game after a loss in the playoff. The entire two-deep would probably opt out, leaving a depleted squad for a bowl game. My uninformed guess would be the season ends with a playoff loss.
Will be interesting to see southern teams finally play football in snow and freezing weather in December!
Would that be much different than it is now: not making the playoff and going to play in another meaningless game?
Because they can no longer win it all? That is every bowl team except for a couple every year for the past 100 years.
Not really. Fans of most bowl teams have no expectations of making the playoff whereas fans of playoff losers have had their expectations deflated, along with turning on a dime as far as travel plans go.
given the mega conference trend, I am not interested in an "inclusion" plan where most conferences gets an auto qualifier. In BB we have about 100 teams involved in the NCAA and NIT, and PSU is typically in the top 60-70 teams and gets in not tournament. I want the top 12 if we are going to have that model. If most of the teams come from SEC and BIG, that is fine to me. Currently, the BIG is actually punishing itself with scheduling models that do not maximize their teams getting in the playoff. For example, let's say Penn State has to start playing (on the road) in a BIG game and also play USC, UM, OSU and MSU. along with possible Iowa or Wisky. That type of schedule could generate 2 or 3 losses, but the team could be top 12. Then you let a champ from a low end conference in, who if they were in the BIG would be a bottom feeder. Then you are not getting the best 12. ND cannot be treated as a conference. If they want to be independent they would still need to be best 12 in my book.
Find a way to get the BEST 12 teams and no auto qualifiers - not everyone gets a ribbon, and that feels like we are getting a real playoff. A 9-3 Ole Miss team might be a lot better than an unbeaten team from a minor conference.
The current 4 team model does seem to catch the best teams now. Even the 3 and 4 get blown out a lot. The best 8 out of 3 mega conferences is more likely to get the best on best.
I am in favor of a playoff that finds a way to get the best teams in, and not have scheduling be the dominant factor in a team's success. A Penn State with 10-2 record might be far better than a lower tier team that is 12-0. So whatever the method, I am looking for a system that puts Penn State in ahead of that team. eye test, computers, voters, whatever method I prefer to see the best on the best. If the SEC and BIG are dominant, then they get more teams in with no limits. if you create auto qualifiers then #12 could wind up 40 pts worse than #1.
Get unlimited access today.