CBS: Momentum rapidly growing for College Football Playoff expansion to eight or more teams

Should be 8 teams. One each from the P5, one from a non-P5 (which includes ND), and two at large to fill in the eight slots. Also, no conference can have more than 2 teams.
Should be 12 but with more than 6 auto bids.

Bring back BCS formula auto bid for any conference champ in the top 20.
2+ at larges to fill in the rest of the gaps.

That would be the way you could expand the playoff. Leave open the possibility of 2 or 3 bids for the big conferences, but also INCREASE the value of regular season games
 

Lifetime dream of mine to go to a Minnesota Rose Bowl. That would make me happy. Getting 7th seed for a money grab - not nearly the charm. I kept my tickets through Wacker and Brewster. Funny that it will be the tossing aside of tradition that’s going to be the reason I drop my tickets.
You’re going to drop your tickets because coastal Carolina is going to play Texas A&M?
 

There is still incentive to try and win a Conf title or at least finish with the best possible record to get the 1st round bye or, if you're seeded 5-8, get a home game in the first round.

Coaches being what they are, I suspect that Coaches will tell their players to focus on the regular season, and don't even think about playoffs until the regular season is over, including conference championship games. Win enough games, and the playoffs will take care of themselves.
 

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF EXPANSION WOULD BE HUGE WIN FOR BIG TEN WEST

MINNESOTA TO THE CFP?​

To get an automatic bid, the Gophers would still have to break the West’s losing streak in B1G Championship games. But under this newly proposed format, the best power-five conferences are expected to receive a total of two or three invites per season.


Go Gophers!!
 

No team ranked outside of the top 4 will ever win a championship.
What a silly thing to say.

What if each P5 champion and Notre Dame all go undefeated? That's six, right there. Plus we know the SEC champ game losers is often more than capable of beating Alabama in a given year, especially in a rematch.

Is that likely to happen? No. But you said ever, so that's your fault.
 
Last edited:


As the article notes, the SEC is apparently pushing for more teams because......surprise.....they want more SEC teams in the playoffs.

in one example given, an 8-team field might have 2 SEC teams, but a 12-team field could potentially have at least 3 or even 4 SEC teams. (as the SEC sees it, of course, because they think they are the only conference in the BCS.)
As long as the power five conferences are guaranteed a spot with three at large why not.
 

Some very interesting tidbits have come out about the proposal. This is just what a working committee is going to recommend. Of course, it's not like the Presidents are going to be experts on this and want to change it .... but it does give time for different folks/groups to lobby them this way and that. We'll see.


 


This could potentially set-up the quarter-finals being played in the traditional BCS bowls on NYE/NYD weekend, and some attempt made to salvage traditional tie-ins, if they're reasonably there to be had in a given bracket.

I would vote for Cotton and Peach to be permanent semi-finals, played perhaps the weekend after NYD, or around then. Reasons: Dallas and ATL are massive air hubs and both have new(ish), indoor, large NFL stadiums that can easily house high-level broadcast productions, never need to worry about the weather, etc.

Natty site will continue to be bid-out.


I think the main variable to argue about is the first round. Does it really make sense to give those four hosts essentially a free, extra home game? Could other bowl games be incorporated, instead? Or what about bidding those sites out (ie, Mpls, Indy, Detroit could potentially be hosts with indoor stadiums)?
 



As far as the Gophers making it, even if they don't make the conf championship game.

Maybe.

Keep in mind, ostensibly we're still talking about the "top 12" ranked teams in the country. Just like the NY6 is now.

Yes of course, the top six ranked conf champs get the auto bid, and easily one ore more of them could be outside the top 12.


But still think most years you'll need to be top 15 ranked in the final CFP rankings. So that is probably going to be a tall order if the Big Ten champ game is Wisc/Iowa vs Ohio St.
 

It will be a bummer if the Gophers win a Big Ten/Big Ten West title and miss out on the Rose Bowl.

But, that would mean they are good enough to go into the playoffs. Hopefully, deep into it.
 

It will be a bummer if the Gophers win a Big Ten/Big Ten West title and miss out on the Rose Bowl.

But, that would mean they are good enough to go into the playoffs. Hopefully, deep into it.
The Rose Bowl is just ... a different Rose Bowl now.

It's sad but it's just not the same thing anymore. Still an accomplishment, but it's not the same anymore.

Even if we went as a B1G runner up some year .... it obviously wouldn't be the same as past Rose Bowls either.
 

Some very interesting tidbits have come out about the proposal. This is just what a working committee is going to recommend. Of course, it's not like the Presidents are going to be experts on this and want to change it .... but it does give time for different folks/groups to lobby them this way and that. We'll see.


Notre Dame AD realizes that they get a bye by not playing a conf. champ. game?
 




One of the articles I read noted that - if the 12-team proposal goes forward, it would result in some of the current bowl games being eliminated.

I don't remember if that was speculation or if it was based on "inside information."
 

This could potentially set-up the quarter-finals being played in the traditional BCS bowls on NYE/NYD weekend, and some attempt made to salvage traditional tie-ins, if they're reasonably there to be had in a given bracket.

I would vote for Cotton and Peach to be permanent semi-finals, played perhaps the weekend after NYD, or around then. Reasons: Dallas and ATL are massive air hubs and both have new(ish), indoor, large NFL stadiums that can easily house high-level broadcast productions, never need to worry about the weather, etc.

Natty site will continue to be bid-out.


I think the main variable to argue about is the first round. Does it really make sense to give those four hosts essentially a free, extra home game? Could other bowl games be incorporated, instead? Or what about bidding those sites out (ie, Mpls, Indy, Detroit could potentially be hosts with indoor stadiums)?
I mean, don't other sports essentially do this already? Seems pretty par for the course.
 

One of the articles I read noted that - if the 12-team proposal goes forward, it would result in some of the current bowl games being eliminated.

I don't remember if that was speculation or if it was based on "inside information."
I guess if none of the added playoff games are bowl games then ... yeah that would reduce the pool...

But hey just let anyone in I say. Bowl games are fun.
 

One of the articles I read noted that - if the 12-team proposal goes forward, it would result in some of the current bowl games being eliminated.

I don't remember if that was speculation or if it was based on "inside information."
I would be all for that if it means loping off those needing .500 or sub .500 teams to play.
 

Lifetime dream of mine to go to a Minnesota Rose Bowl. That would make me happy. Getting 7th seed for a money grab - not nearly the charm. I kept my tickets through Wacker and Brewster. Funny that it will be the tossing aside of tradition that’s going to be the reason I drop my tickets.
Tradition went out the door years ago.
 

Notre Dame AD realizes that they get a bye by not playing a conf. champ. game?
I believe that is essentially the heart of the issue, yes.


Also, ND is willing to continue to make concessions to conferences, in exchange for not being "forced" to join one by maintaining good access to the playoff.

Even in the current CFP setup: the automatic slot in the NY6 bowl games has to go to a G5 conference champion, so ND can never qualify for that access over the American or Mountain West champs. They agreed to that.
 

I mean, don't other sports essentially do this already? Seems pretty par for the course.
They do.

The easiest and maybe best comparison is the FCS playoff. For example, North Dakota State often gets an extra three home games, because all rounds prior to the championship are hosted on-campus.

But, the huge and critical difference is: all post-season tournaments for all sports other than FBS are controlled by the NCAA. Meaning, those games in Fargo are technically NCAA events, and thus the NCAA gets (I believe, don't quote me here) a big percentage of whatever gameday revenues are generated.

That would not be the case for these four extra games, in the (FBS) CFP. Does that matter much? Do people care much? Probably not. Might be just fine, and worth it avoid any additional logistics/planning effort to setup other sites for the four first round games.

But on the other hand, I would not be surprised if some bowls lobbied the presidents to have those four games be bowl games. There are still some major bowl games outside the current NY6 group, that could be included, in some major markets and new(ish) NFL stadiums. Vegas, the new LA stadium. Of course you also have games in Nashville, Charlotte. Then the "second tier" Florida bowls (behind the Orange), like the Outback, Gator, Citrus. And so on.
 

Should be 8 teams. One each from the P5, one from a non-P5 (which includes ND), and two at large to fill in the eight slots. Also, no conference can have more than 2 teams.

This sounds like a good option.
 

So, I found a breakdown of how the 12-team format would have looked for the last 7 years (the period of the 4-team playoff system).

under the current system, the playoff featured 11 different teams from 5 conferences in 7 years. Under the 12-team system, the playoffs would have featured 39 teams from 9 different conferences.

4 of the 39 teams would have been ranked outside of the top 12 at the end of the regular season.

On the other hand, 22 teams that were ranked in the top 12 would have missed the playoffs.

And - how would the B1G have fared?

The B1G would have had a cumulative 20 playoff appearances - the most of any P5 Conf. (SEC would have had 19).

Here are the B1G teams that would have been in a 12-team playoff:

2014: Ohio State, Mich St
2015: Mich St, IA, OSU
2016: PSU, OSU, Mich, WI
2017: OSU, WI, PSU
2018: OSU Mich, PSU
2019: OSU, WI, PSU
2020: OSU, Ind
 

So, I found a breakdown of how the 12-team format would have looked for the last 7 years (the period of the 4-team playoff system).

under the current system, the playoff featured 11 different teams from 5 conferences in 7 years. Under the 12-team system, the playoffs would have featured 39 teams from 9 different conferences.

4 of the 39 teams would have been ranked outside of the top 12 at the end of the regular season.

On the other hand, 22 teams that were ranked in the top 12 would have missed the playoffs.

And - how would the B1G have fared?

The B1G would have had a cumulative 20 playoff appearances - the most of any P5 Conf. (SEC would have had 19).

Here are the B1G teams that would have been in a 12-team playoff:

2014: Ohio State, Mich St
2015: Mich St, IA, OSU
2016: PSU, OSU, Mich, WI
2017: OSU, WI, PSU
2018: OSU Mich, PSU
2019: OSU, WI, PSU
2020: OSU, Ind
That's some good research. PSU and Wisc REALLY like this plan.
 

Just go back to 2 teams. Keeps the season interesting every week, and incentivizes scheduling strong opponents. Controversy over who deserves number 2 isn’t a bad thing for the sport, it makes it more interesting.
 


I think 8 is pretty good.

The distance between #5 wanting making an argument to be in but is left out and #9 is pretty far.

Sure some year it might be a good argument but ... that's a long ways to saying that a national champion was left out.
An unbeaten team would’ve been left out with 8 last season.
they need to expand enough so any unbeaten can make the playoff regardless of conference affiliation IMO
 

Just go back to 2 teams. Keeps the season interesting every week, and incentivizes scheduling strong opponents. Controversy over who deserves number 2 isn’t a bad thing for the sport, it makes it more interesting.
Part of why college football is good is that for a long time they didn’t give the national championship to the team that was the best, they gave it to the team that was most deserving.

when they went to a 4 team playoff that changed


more teams in playoff means talent will win out and we will find the “beat team”

but some year Alabama is going to lose 3 regular season games due to injuries or fluke plays and then win the playoff with 3 losses. They’ll be the best team but they won’t be the most deserving. College football magic is over.



if I had my choice I’d go 12 team playoff.
10 conference champions, 2 at large.
at large have to be seeded 9-12 so they go on the road.

If you make conference championships the most important thing for entry, it doesn’t devalue the regular season. One upset could still make the difference. 6 at larges could wreck things.
 

Just go back to 2 teams. Keeps the season interesting every week, and incentivizes scheduling strong opponents. Controversy over who deserves number 2 isn’t a bad thing for the sport, it makes it more interesting.
That cat is out of the bag, down the street, and got run over on the freeway.

TV money is $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ and will only keep growing with more games, not with less.
 

if I had my choice I’d go 12 team playoff.
10 conference champions, 2 at large.
at large have to be seeded 9-12 so they go on the road.
The G5 getting to use up 5 spots? Sure, they'd love that, but TV would never give up so many precious slots for inferior teams which in turn draw less casual fan TV viewership numbers.
 
Last edited:




Top Bottom