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Oklahoma State Football

College Football Playoff Management Committee Considering 12-Team Expansion

June 10, 2021
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It’s possible we could see the College Football Playoffs expanded in the next couple of seasons. Following a meeting of the College Football Playoff management committee, the idea of a 12-team expansion of the CFP appears to be moving forward.

According to the release from the CFP committee, the proposal was put together by a committee comprised of multiple conference commissioners from around the country, including the Big 12’s Bob Bowlsby, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick.

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"The four-team format has been very popular and is a big success," the members of the four-person working group said in a statement. "But it's important that we consider the opportunity for more teams and more student-athletes to participate in the playoff. After reviewing numerous options, we believe this proposal is the best option to increase participation, enhance the regular season and grow the national excitement of college football."

CFP executive director Bill Hancock talked about a decision being made as early as September. “If a favorable recommendation is made to those presidents and chancellors, they will receive the proposal at their meeting on June 22 in Dallas. If the presidents decide to allow this proposal or any alternative proposal to be considered, we anticipate that there would be a study period over the summer to explore what we believe or what we know to be many details that still remain to be worked out. The earliest, and I repeat that, the earliest that any final decision could be made by the board would be in September. It certainly could be later, but the earliest is September.”

According to the release by the CFP, “four highest-ranked conference champions would be seeded one through four and each would receive a first-round bye, while teams seeded five through 12 would play each other in the first round on the home field of the higher-ranked team.” Following the first round of games, the quarterfinals and semifinals would be played in bowl games, with the championship being played on a neutral site as it has been since the inception of the CFP.

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College football insider Brett McMurphy reported the expansion wouldn’t take place until following the 2023 season at the earliest, with one of his sources saying it’s possible we could see the elimination of anywhere from 4-10 bowl games due to the CFP expansion.

 
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