Disastrous CFP byes could be key to changing format

The College Football Playoff created all the drama we were expecting right? Eight more teams in an expanded playoff, first-round byes, controversial teams landing in the playoff, SEC teams omitted, and we haven’t even crowned a national champion yet. 

The latest gripe with the new CFP format is that every team that earned a first-round bye failed to win a game during the quarterfinal round. Which is fine, just because you have a bye doesn’t mean you should win. But maybe it means getting a first-round bye isn’t all that it was originally hyped up to be. 

You almost have a better advantage playing in the first round. Especially when you look at having nearly a month off in between games versus a week or so. It was a great idea, but with every game being a blowout, save for Arizona State and Texas, it makes you wonder if a change to the format is on the horizon. 

According to Chris Vannini, who is a senior writer at The Athletic, a format could change for the 2025 edition of the playoff, but it would require a unanimous vote from the 10 league commissioners and Notre Dame. The question is, how likely is that to happen?

The first edition of the expanded College Football Playoff had its flaws, but could be an easy fix

Vannini said on his X platform account, formerly known as Twitter, that it would require the Group of 5 conferences, plus the Big 12 and the ACC to give up two automatic bids to conference winners. And that seems like a long shot. 

For what it’s worth, with how this year turned out, it doesn’t sound like a bad idea. But it’s a hard sell to ask the conferences not named the SEC and the Big Ten to make it even harder for them to get into the College Football Playoff. 

Look at this year, the ACC was able to get two teams in, including one at-large bid. Even that was a stretch. Both of those teams lost in the first round of the CFP. And then look at Boise State. Had there not been an automatic bid in play, would they have realistically been ranked high enough to get in as well?

Probably not. And based on how Army and Tulane were toyed with in the rankings, I’m not confident any Group of 5 team will ever be ranked high enough to get into the CFP. 

So the SEC and Big Ten would have their work cut out if they want to convince the smaller conferences to get rid of, perhaps, their only insurance to getting into the College Football Playoff. 

I think if the committee didn’t favor brands, “good” losses and bigger conferences, it would be easier to get a unanimous vote. But I just don’t see a unanimous vote happening. And Notre Dame, which doesn’t have a conference at all, is at just as much of a disadvantage. 

The smaller conferences would have to decide what’s more important. Getting in, possibly getting a first-round bye, waiting a month to play while your opponent is coming off a win a week ago, or not getting in at all, despite having a ranked conference champion. 

It would come down to having a tougher non-conference schedule, especially for conferences that hardly have or even have a chance of having ranked teams. If the bigger conferences can convince the smaller ones they have just as much of a shot to get in without an automatic bye, then it’s likely there’s a change. 

Otherwise, there won’t be a chance anytime soon in my opinion. That is, unless they can negotiate a better system to consider the “have-nots” more seriously.