After College Football Playoffs Expands To 12-Team Format, Some Key Questions Remain

The current four-team format of NCAA Division I College Football playoffs is expanding to include 12 teams at the end of each season. 

Instead of four teams being chosen around Division I football by a selection committee, the NCAA Division I College Football playoffs will now consist of the five highest-ranked conference champions along with seven at-large berths. These will be the champions of the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC. If the champion of one of these top four conferences finishes lower in the official playoff rankings than two of the champions from other eligible conferences (American Athletic Conference, Conference USA, Mountain West, Sun Belt, and Mid-American Conference), however, they will have to qualify as one of the seven at-large participants.

In other words, the top four teams in the official playoff rankings will qualify automatically, and eight other teams will qualify at-large. The top four seeds will receive a bye, and the bottom eight will play to eliminate four opponents for the quarterfinal round.

The extra games in this playoff format will result in some unintended consequences. For instance, the No. 1 seed will almost always destroy the winner of the game between the No. 8 vs. No. 9 seed. It does provide an opportunity for crazy upsets and Cinderella stories, though.

Up to four extra games will also complicate the decision-making process for draft-eligible players. Will it be worth it, say, for a key player on the No. 12 seeded team to skip a game against a far superior No. 5 seeded team, if the No. 5 seed is expected to win by a landslide? Will that player play if they win a game or two?

Or will teams be having key players just tap out before the playoffs even begin?

It used to be expected of college players to play every game for their team in a single-elimination tournament. Now draft prospects can make their own business decisions which will significantly affect the college game.

Regardless of what players decide to do, there will be more teams in the playoffs, which means more games and more money. More money for everyone but the players, of course.

The four-team format wasn’t enough, but 12 is beginning to seem like too many.

Article by Nathan Weick

USports writing intern and second year student-athlete at Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA pursuing BA in Professional Writing and BA in Spanish/Hispanic Cultures. Juniata College Mens Soccer Captain and former president of the Juniata College Class of 2026.