The quarterfinal stage of the 2024-2025 College Football Playoff is only just getting underway, but the new format is already being scrutinized. According to one report, it could change as soon as next year.
Two changes are being discussed to improve the 12-team College Football Playoff. What are they, and could they work?
How Could the College Football Playoff Format Change?
This season was the first that the top five highest-ranked conference champions earned automatic qualifiers.
No one seems to have an issue with the Oregon Ducks or Georgia Bulldogs earning an automatic bid. Still, some questioned why the Boise State Broncos, Arizona State Sun Devils, and Clemson Tigers were guaranteed a spot in the postseason.
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Boise State was ranked inside the top 10, but Arizona State had to sneak into the backend of the top 12, and Clemson was ranked 16th in the final College Football Playoff rankings and made the final 12 via an automatic bid.
Of course, Boise State and Arizona State earned first-round byes as the ninth and twelfth-highest-ranked teams, respectively.
According to a report, there will be “in-depth discussions” about tweaking the playoff system, with most of those revolving around byes for teams outside the top four.
There will be “in-depth discussions” about not guaranteeing conference champs top 4 @CFBPlayoff seeds in 2025, sources said. Top 5 conference champs still get in but rankings determine seeds. How this year’s playoff would have looked in that format ⤵️https://t.co/MVhukO8BlV pic.twitter.com/2KKUSgtT0D
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 30, 2024
It would shake up the way we think about the postseason.
Things would certainly be different if the playoff committee had followed this model in 2024. That means that Boise State and Arizona State would have played in the first round, while the higher-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions and Texas Longhorns would have earned first-round byes.
Not only would that shake up the byes, but it would also shake up the host teams for first-round games. Instead of going on the road to Columbus, Ohio, the Tennessee Volunteers, as the seventh seed, would have hosted a first-round matchup.
Similarly, the Indiana Hoosiers would have hosted, likely facing ninth-ranked Boise State.
As the 11th-ranked team, Arizona State would have gone on the road instead of earning a bye.
Unsurprisingly, the playoff format is under fire, and even the number of teams could change after the current media deal ends after the 2025-2026 season.
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