The College Football Playoff format will be changing in 2025 to a 12-team playoff format, which will be a big change from allowing just four teams to compete. The CFP committee has been working on expansion for the last few years, and 12 has always felt like the number that would be used, a game changing movement for the upcoming NCAAF odds.
While that change is expected to happen during this season’s NCAAF schedule, there could be even bigger changes in 2026 as the current contract ends in 2025. Sources have indicated that the committee is now looking to increase that number to 14 teams, and it would cause some huge shifts in the sport of college football.
ESPN will be the television partner of the CFP moving forward, as it agreed to pay more than $1.3 billion for the next six seasons. Money is always at the root of all of these decisions, and the CFP is looking to cash in even more by allowing additional NCAAF teams to compete.
The CFP committee leaders will convene via video next week, aiming to agree upon a new format. Since conference realignment is going to shake up the sport anyway, now is the perfect time to make some changes.
A Look at Proposed Format
The Big Ten Conference and the Southeastern Conference (SEC) have formed two power leagues beginning in 2024 as they stole programs from other conferences. The Pac-12 Conference has completely disbanded, and that has changed the landscape of college athletics.
The Big Ten and SEC presidents and chancellors are striving to safeguard their schools in the new format, and the CFP Committee seems open to that prospect.While nothing is official yet, proposals have already been announced that would guarantee spots to each conference.
Under the current proposal, both the Big Ten and SEC would get three teams in the CFP every single year. The ACC and Big 12 Conferences would also receive two spots each as guarantees.
While that might not seem fair to the rest of the country, those two leagues are going to be bringing in a majority of the revenue. There would also be one automatic qualifier from the Group of 5 Conferences, and then three other spots would come from at-large teams.
Notre Dame continues to be an independent in college football, and that university is getting some guarantees as well. Finishing in the Top 14 in the final rankings guarantees Notre Dame a spot in the CFP every year.
Notre Dame has faced pressure to join a conference for protection, but it won’t be necessary under this new College Football Playoff format.
Work to Be Done
The committee needs to discuss several matters before approving any new changes, but the direction is positive. It’s unclear how teams would be placed on a bracket if 14 teams were in the mix as the CFP could want to keep conference rivals from playing early on in the tournament.
Since the CFP is independent of the NCAA, this new College Football Playoff format will not need to be approved by all of the member institutions. The committee will also need to figure out what to do with the revenue from this event as every league is going to want a piece of the money.
It’s evident that traditional bowl games will undergo changes as the Pac-12 no longer secures specific spots. The Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl are hosting some of the top CFP matchups, unrestricted by specific leagues.
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