Changes to CFB Playoffs? Likely for 2026 not 2025

[cookies]

Uh oh, watch out, Sankey has RESEARCH!!!

I cannot wait until this ******* retires.

Unless we join the SEC, of course.

But seriously, why does he approach everything in such an antagonistic manner? He can advocate for his conference and still consider what’s good for the sport at large.

I feel like he is prob still shellshocked because 9 months ago, it was everyone against the B1G & he presumed he’d win out by holding out. Now, it’s everyone against the SEC.

I think he is used to having his way and doesn’t want to lose being a major decision maker. He wants to only expand to 16 teams & keep conference championship games very badly. They think their conference is such a ‘gauntlet’ and every OOC loss exposes that it’s not.

All this talk about the regular season being devalued is ridiculous to me lol. Right now we are seeing the regular season weakening because programs are scared to schedule OOC games. A 24 team playoff gives everyone more freedom.

He cites Oklahoma’s regular season as a positive of a scare playoff but if we expanded to 16 then Texas gets in despite their loss to UF + 2 more Ls. So that doesn’t make much sense lol. Texas was a long shot to get in and still beat A&M because the game itself had stakes.

Oklahoma got in the playoff just to lose their rematch to Alabama whose loss to FSU should’ve disqualified them from making the final 12. It doesn’t make for good TV for Alabama to play two rematches against UGA and OU; even if the result differed.

 

[caneingville]

All this talk about the regular season being devalued is ridiculous to me lol. Right now we are seeing the regular season weakening because programs are scared to schedule OOC games. A 24 team playoff gives everyone more freedom.

I cut out the rest because this paragraph gets to the meat and potatoes of the whole thing.

Isn’t this just six of one, half dozen of the other? The regular season is devaluing, weakening, sucking compared to how it used to be.

I also don’t know what you mean by freedom.

Why don’t we just get rid of the regular season altogether - once we have the P2 in place - and have the playoffs BE the season? Every game will matter, no ****** G5/FCS games (because **** ‘em, that’s why!), and we can stop going around and around trying to edit the system every other year. And we’ll have a true winner.

I’m being facetious, of course, but your post is full of contradictions, so I’m truly not quite sure if you are for the 16- or 24- team option.

Was it boring in the 2003 season when we beat FSU twice? I didn’t think so. I’m sure UF and FSU fans quite enjoyed replaying each other in the 1996 championship game, immediately after their annual rivalry game. What about how excited everyone was for the Indiana-Oregon rematch last year?

Yes, I do get that everyone has SEC fatigue right now, but that will wear off in the next few years as NIL continues to have its effect. I’m not convinced that a larger CFP is necessary - I’m also not convinced it’s a bad thing either though. My original point about Sankey is that I just wish that he could work with the rest of CFB to find the best solutions, and not always be so combative.

 

[cookies]

I cut out the rest because this paragraph gets to the meat and potatoes of the whole thing.

Isn’t this just six of one, half dozen of the other? The regular season is devaluing, weakening, sucking compared to how it used to be.

I also don’t know what you mean by freedom.

Why don’t we just get rid of the regular season altogether - once we have the P2 in place - and have the playoffs BE the season? Every game will matter, no ****** G5/FCS games (because **** ‘em, that’s why!), and we can stop going around and around trying to edit the system every other year. And we’ll have a true winner.

I’m being facetious, of course, but your post is full of contradictions, so I’m truly not quite sure if you are for the 16- or 24- team option.

Was it boring in the 2003 season when we beat FSU twice? I didn’t think so. I’m sure UF and FSU fans quite enjoyed replaying each other in the 1996 championship game, immediately after their annual rivalry game. What about how excited everyone was for the Indiana-Oregon rematch last year?

Yes, I do get that everyone has SEC fatigue right now, but that will wear off in the next few years as NIL continues to have its effect. I’m not convinced that a larger CFP is necessary - I’m also not convinced it’s a bad thing either though. My original point about Sankey is that I just wish that he could work with the rest of CFB to find the best solutions, and not always be so combative.

there are tradeoffs either way. I prefer the 24 team option however the reasoning that Sankey gave doesn’t make sense for me. There is an argument for 16 but 16 without elimination of conference championship games also doesn’t make sense to me.

by freedom I mean usc not being scared to play Notre dame anymore or Alabama not feeling like they need to cancel a home & home with ok state etc.

 

[caneingville]

there are tradeoffs either way. I prefer the 24 team option however the reasoning that Sankey gave doesn’t make sense for me. There is an argument for 16 but 16 without elimination of conference championship games also doesn’t make sense to me.

by freedom I mean usc not being scared to play Notre dame anymore or Alabama not feeling like they need to cancel a home & home with ok state etc.

That makes sense. I really, really hate that this is happening. The best thing for the sport is to have balanced schedules with these home-and-homes.

I don't care as much about the conference championships. They were fun back in the day, but somewhere along the way I just stopped caring. I suspect it was partly due to feeling like we got screwed by the ACC so many times, and that's my own personal bias. But also, if the conference champion doesn't factor into the CFP, why do we care?

 

[NicKane]

I feel like he is prob still shellshocked because 9 months ago, it was everyone against the B1G & he presumed he’d win out by holding out. Now, it’s everyone against the SEC.

I think he is used to having his way and doesn’t want to lose being a major decision maker. He wants to only expand to 16 teams & keep conference championship games very badly. They think their conference is such a ‘gauntlet’ and every OOC loss exposes that it’s not.

All this talk about the regular season being devalued is ridiculous to me lol. Right now we are seeing the regular season weakening because programs are scared to schedule OOC games. A 24 team playoff gives everyone more freedom.

He cites Oklahoma’s regular season as a positive of a scare playoff but if we expanded to 16 then Texas gets in despite their loss to UF + 2 more Ls. So that doesn’t make much sense lol. Texas was a long shot to get in and still beat A&M because the game itself had stakes.

Oklahoma got in the playoff just to lose their rematch to Alabama whose loss to FSU should’ve disqualified them from making the final 12. It doesn’t make for good TV for Alabama to play two rematches against UGA and OU; even if the result differed.

End of the day, 12 team playoff is perfect. These young men don’t need to be playing any more games than that, it’s basically NFL light now. 12 teams, still leaves teams out that could’ve gotten in, but they lost a game somewhere down the road that they shouldn’t have lost or didn’t win a big enoughgame and they didn’t get in. That’s how the playoffs are supposed to be.

 

[cookies]

That makes sense. I really, really hate that this is happening. The best thing for the sport is to have balanced schedules with these home-and-homes.

I don't care as much about the conference championships. They were fun back in the day, but somewhere along the way I just stopped caring. I suspect it was partly due to feeling like we got screwed by the ACC so many times, and that's my own personal bias. But also, if the conference champion doesn't factor into the CFP, why do we care?

Exactly; we saw Alabama pull out a struggle win against a coachless Auburn team and then get throttled by UGA who they previously beat.

They, really i mean DeBoer since he saved his job, redeemed themselves by beating OU however it’s ridiculous that their loss against FSU was never talked about when considering them against the other playoff-bubble teams. There was zero justification for Alabama ahead of Miami when Miami beat their common opponent.

I don’t know if a 24 team playoff will bring back home & homes however I know it’s more likely that way than it would be at just at 16.

Moreover, I’d want to see TT play Texas, OU play Ok State, UCLA v Berkeley, and ofc Miami v UF or Miami v Nebraska/Penn State/UCF etc. I don’t understand why p4 schools play FCS schools.

My ideal scenario, however unlikely, is for there to be 2 OOC p4 matchups, 1 cupcake or non-p4 regional game Ala usf vs miami, and 9 conference games for each p4 team.

 

[caneingville]

Exactly; we saw Alabama pull out a struggle win against a coachless Auburn team and then get throttled by UGA who they previously beat.

They, really i mean DeBoer since he saved his job, redeemed themselves by beating OU however it’s ridiculous that their loss against FSU was never talked about when considering them against the other playoff-bubble teams. There was zero justification for Alabama ahead of Miami when Miami beat their common opponent.

I don’t know if a 24 team playoff will bring back home & homes however I know it’s more likely that way than it would be at just at 16.

Moreover, I’d want to see TT play Texas, OU play Ok State, UCLA v Berkeley, and ofc Miami v UF or Miami v Nebraska/Penn State/UCF etc. I don’t understand why p4 schools play FCS schools.

My ideal scenario, however unlikely, is for there to be 2 OOC p4 matchups, 1 cupcake or non-p4 regional game Ala usf vs miami, and 9 conference games for each p4 team.

I would prefer to bring back those old-school rivalries. Whomever puts forth a proposal that brings back Nebraska v. Oklahoma and Miami v. UF and Pitt v. WVU and all those will get my vote.

 

[hurricaneman]

The conferences need to topple. That is THE issue causing all these problems. College football starting from scratch would be one heck of a product.

 

[cookies]

End of the day, 12 team playoff is perfect. These young men don’t need to be playing any more games than that, it’s basically NFL light now. 12 teams, still leaves teams out that could’ve gotten in, but they lost a game somewhere down the road that they shouldn’t have lost or didn’t win a big enoughgame and they didn’t get in. That’s how the playoffs are supposed to be.

Yeah i really like 12, i really liked 4 too; but once they went from 4 to 12, they had the unintended consequences of devaluing the conference championship games that the SEC is now desperate to keep.

I do think the underlined has already gone out the door when they expanded from 4 to 12. After losing week 1 to FSU, in a 4 team playoff, Alabama would’ve had to win out including the SEC championship game to get in. In a 12 team playoff, they were afforded a close loss to OU and a beat-down by UGA in their SEC championship rematch; still got into the playoffs.

A non-SEC champion went the furthest (Texas & Ole Miss) in the expanded playoffs.