College Football Playoff working group endorses 12 teams, first-round byes, Group of Five inclusion
By John Buhler
The College Football Playoff is one step closer towards expanding after Thursday’s meeting.
College Football Playoff expansion is coming with the working group endorsing a 12-team model with six conference champions and six at-large teams making the postseason field.
Sports Illustrated was the first to report the news of playoff expansion and the details.
After working with a four-team field since the advent of the College Football Playoff, the calls for expansion grew louder in recent years with the same teams competing for the national championship. While trying not to diminish the regular season, expanding to 12 teams appears to be the happy medium.
Having 12 teams getting in will appease all Power 5 conferences as well as opening the field for teams from the Group of Five to be included, something that has been an afterthought, as UCF fans can attest.
Sources tell me & @ByPatForde that the CFP working group is recommending a 12-team playoff: 6 highest-ranked conference champs & 6 at-large.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) June 10, 2021
The 4 highest-ranked champs get a bye while other 8 play 1st-round games on campus.
Long way from done, but this is the recommendation.
College Football Playoff has a proposal in place to expand to 12 teams
The four highest-ranked conference champions will receive a bye. This proposed format guarantees at least one Group of Five team gets in annually.
The eight remaining teams will play with the higher-ranked team hosting the lower-ranked one on their campus. This is a welcome change after playing at neutral sites.
Here is how the seeding would have gone last season had this been the format in effect.
How 12-team 2020 @CFBPlayoff would have looked:
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) June 10, 2021
1st round
12 Coastal at 5 Notre Dame
11 Indiana at 6 A&M
10 Iowa State at 7 Florida
9 UGA at 8 Cincinnati
Quarters
CC/ND vs. 4 OU
UGA/UC vs. 1 Bama
IU/A&M vs. 2 Clemson
ISU/UF vs. 3 Ohio State
Semis
4 vs. 1
3 vs. 2
What is interesting about this format is that the Pac-12 still would not have gotten a team in, as the conference champion Oregon Ducks only finished No. 25, as they were 4-2 on the year and did not even win the Pac-12 North last year. That would have allowed two Group of 5 teams to get in with Cincinnati winning The American and undefeated Coastal Carolina winning the Sun Belt.
An official announcement is expected by next week.
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