1 year, 3 months ago

Analysis: With expansion coming, good riddance to the 4-team playoff after unprecedented snub of FSU

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! It’s just going to be better,” The final version of the four-team playoff produced a truly unsatisfying outcome Sunday when unbeaten Florida State was left out because, essentially, its starting quarterback got hurt. But the CFP devalued the rest of the postseason: Highly ranked teams left out are tossed into what are sold as marquee bowl games — the New Year’s Six — but with low stakes and limited reason for the best players to play. The 12-team model won’t necessarily produce better champions, but if Florida State and Georgia were playing in playoff games in December we’d all be better off. “People look for perfection, and there will be some teams that don’t quite make it in 12 who are going to be asking some serious questions.” For what it is worth, here is what a 12-team playoff would have looked like this season : Missouri at Oregon — winner vs. Michigan.

Georgia College Football Games Texas Michigan Season Conference Florida State Playoff Bowl Cfp Good Teams analysis games conference 4team season playoff florida state unprecedented coming expansion good teams bowl college football fsu riddance snub

History of this topic

3 weeks, 4 days ago

Women’s college basketball debate: Which teams have a shot at winning the NCAA Tournament?

New York Times

The Athletic’s debate series features two writers breaking down a topic. Before March Madness begins, let’s undergo an exercise to predict the teams we think have a shot at winning this year’s national title before seeing the matchups. Sabreena Merchant: There are five teams I can envision holding that trophy — as in, I don’t have to stretch my imagination …

2 months, 1 week ago

CFP officials task conference commissioners with reviewing 12-team Playoff format, weighing future changes

New York Times

By Stewart Mandel, Chris Vannini and Ralph D. Russo ATLANTA — The university presidents who oversee the College Football Playoff have charged conference commissioners with reviewing the first year of the 12-team format and determining any potential format changes going forward. “We’re going to turn to the Management Committee and our staff to come up with any, or keep it …

2 months, 2 weeks ago

The 12-team Playoff got too much right in Year 1 to change the format already

New York Times

One day before this year’s national championship game, the 10 conference commissioners and 10 presidents — along with Notre Dame’s leaders — who control the College Football Playoff will meet in Atlanta to discuss how it went and how to potentially change the format for 2025 or 2026. Ohio State and Notre Dame will meet in a national championship game …

2 months, 3 weeks ago

With College Football Playoff down to 4 teams, not much looks different with Big Ten and SEC

Associated Press

Now that the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff is down to four teams remaining — the size of the field the previous 10 seasons — things really don’t look that much different. Even without former CFP champions Alabama and Georgia, the SEC extended its streak as the only conference with a final four team every season when league newcomer Texas …

What Everyone Is Missing About the College Football Playoff

Trending News

55 years, 2 months ago

What Everyone Is Missing About the College Football Playoff

Slate

The first 12-team iteration of the College Football Playoff had four chances to produce a competitive first-round game. ProFootballTalk opined, “A 12-team college football playoff sounds like a great idea until it’s all lesser teams going on the road to play better teams in late December and getting their asses kicked.” These people are all making different points but missing …

3 months, 1 week ago

College Football Playoff blowouts are nothing new, whether it’s 12 teams or 4

New York Times

The inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff that kicked off this weekend featured an unwelcome carryover from its four-team predecessor. ESPN’s win probability never dipped below 87 percent in the fourth quarter for Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State or Texas. Though last year’s semifinals were close, in the four-team Playoff era, the average margin of victory in the first round …

3 months, 1 week ago

12-team college football playoff arrives after 100 years, a few billion dollars and many detours

Associated Press

It took more than 100 years, a few billion dollars and the cold, hard realization that you can’t fight progress forever. The first 12-team College Football Playoff kicks off Friday and Saturday with four first-round games on campuses steeped in gridiron tradition: Texas, Penn State, Notre Dame and Ohio State. A deal struck decades ago as part of the NFL’s …

3 months, 1 week ago

12-team college football playoff arrives after 100 years, a few billion dollars and many detours

The Independent

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. The first 12-team College Football Playoff kicks off …

3 months, 2 weeks ago

College Football Playoff guide for bandwagon fans: Reasons to root for (and against) every team

New York Times

We survived the wackiness of the BCS era and the computer formulas. Ohio State Why you should get on board: You’re a Michigan fan who wants Ohio State to win a few Playoff games — but not the national championship — so Ryan Day can stay in Columbus for a few more years. Notre Dame Why you should get on …

3 months, 3 weeks ago

College Football Playoff bracket: CFP committee picked SMU over Alabama—for good reason.

Slate

SMU is in the College Football Playoff. The selection committee finally biffed out, making the outrageous decision to exclude undefeated Atlantic Coast Conference champion Florida State in favor of a one-loss Alabama team that had won the vaunted Southeastern Conference. Rather than selecting four teams, the committee was picking 12 for the first year of the college game’s expanded playoff. …

3 months, 3 weeks ago

2024 College Football Playoff guide: What to know about the new 12-team format, at-large bids

New York Times

College football entered a new era Sunday with the unveiling of the first 12-team Playoff bracket. For most of its century-plus existence, college football had a “mythical national champion.” The sport’s season champion was determined after teams played in bowl games by various polls and rankings, which, of course, led to significant debate. The four quarterfinal games and both semifinals …

College Football Playoff takeaways: Clemson kickstarts SMU-Alabama debate for final spot

Trending News

3 months, 3 weeks ago

College Football Playoff takeaways: Clemson kickstarts SMU-Alabama debate for final spot

New York Times

By Ralph D. Russo, Matt Baker, Justin Williams, Joe Rexrode and Sam Khan Jr. The first 12-team College Football Playoff field will be revealed on Sunday, but a lot was still to be determined by Saturday’s Power 4 conference championship games after Boise State locked up the first automatic bid on Friday. pic.twitter.com/GmNL2hnoO0 — ACC Network December 8, 2024 It’s …

3 months, 3 weeks ago

Inside Florida State’s historic fall from 13-0 to its worst showing in 50 years

New York Times

Even with 40 minutes left in a lost season, Florida State still had hope. Florida State spent more than $1 million giving its 10 assistants proactive raises while keeping Norvell away from Alabama with a new, eight-year contract that made him one of the game’s highest-paid coaches. “If this is a tailspin that started at 40,000 feet,” said a person …

3 months, 3 weeks ago

How much does the CFP selection committee punish conference championship game losers?

New York Times

There’s a fear among this year’s College Football Playoff contenders that losing a conference championship game could net them a worse result than not playing in one at all. Overall, the 47 teams that lost power-conference title games in the CFP’s first decade dropped an average of two spots in the final CFP Top 25. With all eyes on how …

3 months, 4 weeks ago

College Football Playoff rankings: Miami out, Alabama in with last at-large bid as ACC implications linger

New York Times

Alabama moved into position to receive an at-large bid to the College Football Playoff and Miami was locked out of contention as the selection committee’s penultimate rankings Tuesday night narrowed the field of contenders. ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips said the conference was “incredibly shocked and disappointed” by Miami’s fall after the Hurricanes lost this past weekend, 42-38, at No. 16 …

3 months, 4 weeks ago

College Football Playoff 2024 projections: A new No. 1, Ohio State hits the road

New York Times

My pool of teams did not change from last week to this week, but Ohio State’s inexplicable home loss to Michigan and Miami’s loss at Syracuse certainly shook up the seeding. In this scenario, I have both Texas and Penn State sustaining a second loss in their conference title games but remaining above 11-1 Notre Dame in the rankings. Finally, …

4 months ago

CFP rankings: Georgia, Texas, and College Football Playoff madness in Week 14.

Slate

At the onset of fall, it was clear that the growth of the College Football Playoff from four teams to 12 would make this season unlike any other. Ole Miss is likely out of the playoff race because it plays miserable Mississippi State this week, and beating a team that goes winless in SEC play should not help the Rebels …

4 months ago

SEC losses are big gains for SMU and Indiana in latest College Football Playoff rankings

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The Southeastern Conference’s losses were almost everyone else’s gain in the College Football Playoff rankings, with SMU nudging its way into the top 12 and Indiana staying in the mix at No. “They dropped five but we still felt their body of work was strong enough …

4 months, 1 week ago

What we learned about the College Football Playoff: SEC upsets, Big 12 chaos, Indiana’s hopes

New York Times

The weekend before Thanksgiving often feels like the calm before the storm in college football. Interesting to read analysis from others as they examine “strength of schedule” in college football…it does seem there is a trend to be identified… pic.twitter.com/pXSfxRMxvL — Greg Sankey November 21, 2024 But at a certain point, it doesn’t seem like too much to ask these …

4 months, 1 week ago

Florida State is losing recruits at nearly the same pace that it’s losing games in 2024

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Coach Mike Norvell spent years slowly rebuilding at Florida State and then suddenly turned the Seminoles into a championship contender last season. Pierre Louis made the move after watching the Gators upset LSU on Saturday — nearly a week after Norvell fired three …

4 months, 2 weeks ago

College football: Florida State’s disaster season of losses is historic.

Slate

College football has never had a disaster season like the one the 2024 Florida State Seminoles are putting on right now. Florida State is one of roughly 14 championship-capable programs at the sport’s top level, part of the select few who can recruit enough elite players to win the whole enchilada when enough things go right. While much of FSU’s …

4 months, 2 weeks ago

Ranking 134 college football teams after Week 11: Will shaky contenders feel an SEC squeeze?

New York Times

Editor’s note: The Athletic 134 is a weekly ranking of all FBS college football teams. The ACC and Big 12’s hopes of sending multiple teams to the first 12-team College Football Playoff took a big hit over the weekend. Meanwhile, Ole Miss’ win at Georgia brought more SEC teams into the Playoff mix rather than knocking one out with a …

4 months, 3 weeks ago

Miami’s magic runs out at Georgia Tech. Can Canes still make College Football Playoff?

New York Times

This time, Cam Ward couldn’t save the Canes. Miami’s hopes of making the 12-team College Football Playoff field could now come down to winning its first ACC championship — and there’s no guarantee the Hurricanes will even get there. It was Georgia Tech’s first win over an AP top-five opponent since a 2009 victory against Virginia Tech, and the Yellow …

4 months, 3 weeks ago

College football coaches weigh in on the Playoff rankings: ‘They gave us a lot of respect’

New York Times

The first 12-team College Football Playoff ranking reveal on Tuesday didn’t stray far from the AP Top 25. “For us, it’s just keep winning because there’s so much that is gonna happen in the next three or four weeks, and then who wins the conferences matter,” Lashlee added. It’s cool momentum for our program in recruiting and it shows our …

4 months, 3 weeks ago

Will the first College Football Playoff rankings of 12-team era favor Big Ten, SEC?

New York Times

Tuesday night’s College Football Playoff Top 25 rankings will surely be the most picked-apart first installment of a season since the CFP debuted in 2014. It’s also the committee’s first set of rankings in the new era of superconferences, where the SEC and Big Ten are trying to position themselves as superior to everyone else. “You can come from a …

5 months, 2 weeks ago

College football midseason bowl projections: How new CFP format impacts rest of bowl season

New York Times

The expanded College Football Playoff will give this sport something that previously was unrivaled by the other sport: a true Selection Sunday. Texas Clemson-Alabama winner 8:45 p.m. ESPN Orange Jan. 9 Miami, Fla. Quarterfinal winner Quarterfinal winner 7:30 p.m. ESPN Cotton Jan. 10 Arlington, Texas Quarterfinal winner Quarterfinal winner 7:30 p.m. ESPN Championship Jan. 20 Atlanta Semifinal winner Semifinal winner …

6 months ago

College football picks: Georgia-Alabama showdown not as consequential with 12-team CFP but still big

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! 4 Alabama on Saturday in a showdown of two Southeastern Conference superpowers who have combined to win five national titles since the College Football Playoff’s implementation in 2014. Back in the days before the Bowl Championship Series and CFP, a game like Alabama-Georgia could have essentially …

6 months, 2 weeks ago

Florida State is college football’s most disappointing team, and it’s not even close

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! “I know that it’s a frustrating thing to sit there and look at, and it’s frustrating for everybody involved, for those guys that are out there playing,” Florida State coach Mike Norvell said Monday. Norvell turned to the transfer portal for help — a place that …

6 months, 2 weeks ago

Florida State’s 0-3 debacle is a product of poor evaluation, development

New York Times

How does a college football team win 13 games one year and turn into an absolute train wreck the next? Florida State’s Mike Norvell — who signed a contract extension in January that pays him close to $11 million a year — is facing that question. If that isn’t embarrassing enough, Norvell left Memphis five years ago to coach FSU. …

7 months ago

The Worst Thing About This College Football Season Is a Win for Most Teams

Slate

In late September 2008, the fourth-ranked University of Florida football team hosted unranked Ole Miss in Gainesville. For a team aiming to win it all, one loss could mean the end and a second almost always did, and that was a unique feature of college football. The College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams this year. Whoever loses Sunday night’s …

7 months ago

College Football Playoff Bubble Watch: Will teams like Ole Miss, Kansas State be in or out?

New York Times

Read The Athletic’s latest College Football Playoff bubble watch. Percent to make Playoff: 46 percent Kansas State In the new Big 12 without Texas or Oklahoma, reaching the four-team Playoff would be a tall ask in most seasons. Percent to make Playoff: 23 percent Liberty joined the FBS in 2018, and last year, went 13-0 before Oregon crushed the Flames …

7 months, 1 week ago

The college football season is packed with mouthwatering games from coast to coast

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! 9 Michigan, Sept. 7 Perhaps the nation’s most significant non-conference game matches powerhouse programs from the SEC and Big Ten. 5 Alabama, Sept. 28 An early measuring stick game for Alabama and a chance for new coach Kalen DeBoer to grab a signature win following Nick …

7 months, 2 weeks ago

Who will make an expanded College Football Playoff? A potential bracket, using the Top 25 as a guide

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! — Unpredictability lingered into 2022, when five teams that would have gone on to make a 12-team playoff started the season unranked by AP, including national runner-up TCU. — Overall, 29 teams from 2014-23 that started the season unranked by AP would have made a 12-team …

7 months, 3 weeks ago

College Football Playoff 2024 sleepers: 13 unranked teams who can crash the 12-team field

New York Times

College football’s postseason enters a new era in 2024 with the arrival of the 12-team College Football Playoff, featuring automatic bids for the five top-ranked conference champions plus seven at-large selections. — Kyle Tucker The Cyclones return nine starters on both offense and defense, including breakout quarterback Rocco Becht, his top four receivers, the defense’s top five tacklers and leading …

8 months, 2 weeks ago

Florida football has to show improvement or risk being swamped in expanded SEC

New York Times

DALLAS — Billy Napier knew it was coming. Napier has had two losing seasons, and if it’s a third, the Gators almost certainly will be looking for a new coach. The counterargument: Just because those other coaches didn’t get more time doesn’t mean Napier should if he doesn’t look like the coach to take Florida back to glory. Florida had …

8 months, 2 weeks ago

The expanded College Football Playoff: Suddenly, more SEC teams are more interesting

New York Times

DALLAS — A year ago, Missouri football made the jump from obscurity to national relevance. Except now … Tennessee coach Josh Heupel, also speaking Tuesday at SEC media days, listed the team’s accomplishments the past couple of years: 20 total wins, a New Year’s Six bowl win, a top-three conference finish. The most unusual part about this day: All four …

1 year, 1 month ago

Analysis: Big Ten and SEC power play undermines credibility of playoff, marginalizes ACC and Big 12

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! There will be at least two 12-team playoffs, this season and next, but the Power Five is now down to four, dominated by a Big Two: The Southeastern Conference and Big Ten have decided to throw their weight around to protect their own interests with little …

1 year, 1 month ago

College Football Playoff’s 14-team model could include 3 auto-bids for Big Ten, SEC

New York Times

Among the models discussed in the potential 14-team College Football Playoff expansion in 2026 is at least one that would include multiple automatic qualifying spots for each Power 4 conference. A person aware of the discussions told The Athletic a 3-3-2-2-1 model would feature three automatic spots each for the Big Ten and SEC, two each for the Big 12 …

1 year, 1 month ago

With 12-team playoff set, CFP already discussing possibly more teams for 2026 and beyond

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! DALLAS — Now that the yearslong process to finalize how the 12 teams for the expanded College Football Playoff will be selected for the next two seasons is complete, there are already discussions about maybe adding more teams for 2026 and beyond. The CFP management committee …

1 year, 1 month ago

How the 12-team College Football Playoff will work

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The 12-team College Football Playoff is 10 months away from kicking off and the format for it has finally been locked in. University presidents who make up the CFP Board of Managers unanimously approved one last tweak to increase the number of at-large bids from six …

1 year, 1 month ago

College Football Playoff approves 5+7 format and reduces spots for conference champions

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The field for the 12-team College Football Playoff beginning next season will comprise five conference champions and seven at-large selections after the university presidents who oversee the CFP voted unanimously Tuesday to tweak the format. The original plan for the 12-team format was to have the …

1 year, 2 months ago

CFP 1.0 changed college football, not all for better, and was necessary step in postseason evolution

The Independent

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “I think what’s coming is going to be better, …

1 year, 2 months ago

SEC vibe check: CFP loss a hit to the ego, but nothing more, now on to 2024

New York Times

The shots came from the north, the west and all over social media: The vaunted SEC, dominator of college football, had been humbled. Given where Missouri was this time last year, the vibes are better in Eli Drinkwitz’s program than anywhere else in the new 16-team league. It’s hard to project, but with quarterback Carson Beck and a lot of …

1 year, 3 months ago

Georgia-Florida State Orange Bowl lacks juice: 12-team Playoff should’ve come year earlier

New York Times

MIAMI — Florida State offensive coordinator Alex Atkins wasn’t with the team when it found out about the College Football Playoff snub. In his tunnel vision mind, Atkins’ only thought was: “Oh, I gotta get ready for that Georgia defense.” It wasn’t until Atkins went to the car rental desk at San Francisco that reality hit him. “We’re going to …

1 year, 3 months ago

Column: Florida State always seemed out of place in the ACC. Now the Seminoles want out

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The ACC is vowing to hold Florida State to its end of the bargain over television rights, which would force the Seminoles to come up with a staggering pile of cash — the school’s legal counsel put the figure at $572 million — just to head …

1 year, 3 months ago

Florida State to discuss future of athletics, affiliation with ACC at board meeting, AP source says

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The board is expected to consider a possible exit strategy that could involve legal action against the ACC and contracts that bind the conference’s members for 12 more years, according to the person, who spoke Thursday on condition of anonymity because the school had not yet …

1 year, 3 months ago

Florida State vs. the ACC: What you need to know about the Seminoles’ clash with their conference

New York Times

— The Athletic’s Nicole Auerbach, Chris Vannini and Mark Puleo contributed to this story. The ACC’s media rights deal with Disney/ESPN was amended in 2016 and extended from June 30, 2027 through June 30, 2036, well past the lifespan of the current SEC and Big Ten deals. Timeline of events Feb. 24, 2023: At a school board meeting, Florida State …

1 year, 3 months ago

Florida State players and coaches are still hurting as they refocus on trying to stay unbeaten

Associated Press

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The CFP selection committee dropped Florida State from fourth to fifth and outside the four-team playoff, a move it justified because of star quarterback Jordan Travis’ season-ending broken leg. They’ve landed a commitment from Georgia defensive end Marvin Jones Jr., the son of one of the …

1 year, 3 months ago

What is Florida State’s next move? Life at the epicenter of CFP and realignment drama

New York Times

Burnt orange flashed and the University of Texas logo filled the screen, as the Big 12 champion Longhorns locked in the first College Football Playoff berth in program history as the No. “Florida State or Alabama — one spot,” said Rece Davis, host of ESPN’s selection show. “Nationally, the narrative around the ACC is that it’s a weaker, inferior conference …

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21 hours, 58 minutes ago

Florida Gators star Bennett Andersen goes viral after 'falling in love' with female reporter

Daily Mail

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1 week ago

Men’s NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 power rankings: Who’s best positioned to win it all?

New York Times

Editor’s note: This article is part of the Bracket Central series, an inside look at the run-up to the men’s & women’s NCAA Tournaments, along with analysis and picks during the tournaments. 1 Duke Blue Devils 1 Last Rank Duke reasserted its standing as the top team in the tournament on Sunday, destroying Baylor’s limited frontcourt en route to a …

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1 week, 1 day ago