Greg Sankey calls for CFP format to be reconsidered after realignment: ‘Circumstances have changed’
1 year, 4 months ago

Greg Sankey calls for CFP format to be reconsidered after realignment: ‘Circumstances have changed’

New York Times  

Greg Sankey called for the 12-team College Football Playoff format, debuting next season, to be reconsidered after the recent wave of conference realignment, the SEC commissioner said Tuesday in his first time speaking publicly since the Pac-12’s near dissolution. The net of that is circumstances have changed, and I think it’s wise for us to take a step back and reconsider what the format might look like given these changing circumstances.” The presidents who oversee the CFP approved the 12-team bracket and its format last year, but many administrators are approaching the 2024 and 2025 seasons as something of a trial run. What else Sankey said On changing the CFP format, Sankey said he has not “had any meaningful conversations, but I think we have to acknowledge it’s on everyone’s mind, depending on the outcome of these additional membership movement pieces.” Sankey reiterated that a 12-team format “still seems wise,” but that some of the “elements and specifics” should be looked at. With one fewer “power” conference, it makes sense that Sankey would push for at least one extra at-large team over a second Group of 5 champion.

Sec Fbs Format Cfp Sankey 5 Champion  atlarge  circumstances  sankey  think  sec  changed  12team  calls  greg  cfp  conferences  football  realignment  reconsidered  format  spots

History of this topic

College Football Playoff bracket: CFP committee picked SMU over Alabama—for good reason.
1 week, 6 days 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. …

CFP rankings: Georgia, Texas, and College Football Playoff madness in Week 14.
3 weeks, 3 days 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 …

What we learned about the CFP in Week 12: Georgia’s still alive, an SEC-Big Ten debate looms
1 month, 1 week ago

What we learned about the CFP in Week 12: Georgia’s still alive, an SEC-Big Ten debate looms

New York Times  

There are two weeks left in college football’s regular season, and there appear to be more teams hanging around College Football Playoff contention than falling out. Big 12 CFP and title odds Team CFP bid B1G title Record Oregon 99% 51% 11-0 Ohio State 99% 45% 9-1 Penn State 93% 1% 9-1 Indiana 89% 4% 10-0 Welcome, Sun Devils Arizona …

Will the first College Football Playoff rankings of 12-team era favor Big Ten, SEC?
1 month, 2 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 …

College Football Playoff Bubble Watch: Big 12, ACC should relish multiple bids if they get them
2 months ago

College Football Playoff Bubble Watch: Big 12, ACC should relish multiple bids if they get them

New York Times  

Read The Athletic’s latest edition of College Football Playoff bubble watch. There’s a chance the Big 12 or ACC might be given two automatic bids in a Playoff that expands to 14 or 16 teams, but the two richest leagues hold all the power to make the rules after the nine conference commissioners and Notre Dame signed a new Playoff …

College football midseason bowl projections: How new CFP format impacts rest of bowl season
2 months, 1 week 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 …

SEC contenders handling early schedule of beefier foes instead of cupcakes to boost playoff resumes
3 months, 1 week ago

SEC contenders handling early schedule of beefier foes instead of cupcakes to boost playoff resumes

Associated Press  

One unknown to scheduling non-conference opponents years in advance is whether those future foes are as attractive when game day finally arrives as they were when the contract was signed. So, I’m certainly glad we were able to play a really good team, a good program like Clemson.” Even with a field featuring the five highest-ranked conference champions and seven …

SEC still looking for more ESPN money to go to 9 conference games
6 months, 3 weeks ago

SEC still looking for more ESPN money to go to 9 conference games

New York Times  

DESTIN, Fla. — The SEC office hasn’t given up trying to get more money from ESPN in exchange for adding a ninth conference game. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said the conference had “conversations with ESPN’s leadership a couple weeks ago just to re-engage” on the schedule, including to “help them understand that if we stay at eight what’s absent from …

New Big 12 out to prove bigger bank accounts don’t always mean better football teams in 12-team CFP
7 months, 3 weeks ago

New Big 12 out to prove bigger bank accounts don’t always mean better football teams in 12-team CFP

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! SCOTTDALE, Ariz. — Before the realigned Big 12 — sans Oklahoma and Texas —even kicks off, the expanded College Football Playoff’s new revenue structure has created a perception that the conference is no longer the equal of the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference. Big 12 commissioner …

CFP leaders agree to framework of Playoff through at least 2031; expansion to 14 on hold
9 months, 1 week ago

CFP leaders agree to framework of Playoff through at least 2031; expansion to 14 on hold

New York Times  

Nine FBS conferences and Notre Dame have signed off on extending the College Football Playoff through the 2031 season, including an agreement on a new revenue distribution model beginning in 2026 in which the Big Ten and SEC will receive larger shares than the other conferences. There is an additional performance bonus available only to independents for making the CFP …

CFP discussing 14-team model with 3 automatic bids each for Big Ten, SEC, AP sources say
9 months, 3 weeks ago

CFP discussing 14-team model with 3 automatic bids each for Big Ten, SEC, AP sources say

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! College Football Playoff officials are considering a 14-team format that would guarantee three spots each for the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference, two for the Atlantic Coast Conference and Big 12 and one for the highest-ranked team from the other five leagues, two people with direct …

CFP weighing 14-team model with 3 automatic bids each for Big Ten, SEC
9 months, 3 weeks ago

CFP weighing 14-team model with 3 automatic bids each for Big Ten, SEC

LA Times  

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh and quarterback J.J. McCarthy celebrate with the College Football Playoff trophy. Playoff officials are considering an expansion plan that would include three automatic bids for the Big Ten and SEC and two each for the ACC and Big 12. College Football Playoff officials are considering a 14-team format that would guarantee three spots each for …

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

SEC’s Sankey visits, talks with trustees, leaders at South Carolina on changing sports landscape
10 months ago

SEC’s Sankey visits, talks with trustees, leaders at South Carolina on changing sports landscape

Associated Press  

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey told University of South Carolina trustees the league’s union with the Big Ten Conference was created to provide leadership for a challenging landscape in college athletics. “We felt it could be helpful if we could shrink those rooms,” Sankey said to school leadership, which included athletic director Ray Tanner. Sankey came in …

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

How the 12-team College Football Playoff will work
10 months 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 …

A 14-team field … already? CFP is fixing something that isn’t broken
10 months ago

A 14-team field … already? CFP is fixing something that isn’t broken

New York Times  

It was too good to be true. The SEC took the top two brands from Bowlsby’s conference, the Big Ten’s old commissioner annexed Los Angeles, the Big 12’s and Big Ten’s new commissioners went scorched earth on the Pac-12, and the ACC picked up their leftovers. GO DEEPER CFP officials discuss expanding to 14 or 16 teams for 2026 onward …

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

College Football Playoff approves 12-team format, reduces spots for conference champs
10 months ago

College Football Playoff approves 12-team format, reduces spots for conference champs

LA Times  

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 six highest-ranked conference champions, with the top four receiving first-round byes, and six at-large …

As CFP meetings resume with ESPN TV deal on table, the battle for control of the future rages
10 months ago

As CFP meetings resume with ESPN TV deal on table, the battle for control of the future rages

New York Times  

— Reporting by Andrew Marchand, Nicole Auerbach, Stewart Mandel and Chris Vannini College football’s future could receive some needed clarity this week. Then there’s the question of governance: Would the Big Ten and SEC, having newly formed a joint advisory group to “take a leadership role in developing solutions for a sustainable future of college sports,” push for more autonomy …

College Football Playoff board approves move to 5+7 model for start of 12-team format
10 months ago

College Football Playoff board approves move to 5+7 model for start of 12-team format

New York Times  

The College Football Playoff Board of Managers on Tuesday voted unanimously to revise the format of the 12-team event to include the five highest-ranked conference champions and seven at-large bids, finalizing an adjustment from the original “6+6” model. The original 6+6 model, which was first introduced nearly three years ago alongside the initial proposal to expand to 12 teams, awarded …

College Football Playoff delays tweaking 12-team format to decrease spots reserved for league champs
11 months, 2 weeks ago

College Football Playoff delays tweaking 12-team format to decrease spots reserved for league champs

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The College Football Playoff delayed reducing the number of spots reserved for conference champions from six to five in the upcoming 12-team format on Monday, though the change is expected to be in place next season. For now, the playoff format for the next two years …

CFP 1.0 changed college football, not all for better, and was necessary step in postseason evolution
11 months, 3 weeks ago

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

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! “I think what’s coming is going to be better, but this worked really well,” said Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick, one of the architects of the 12-team system that goes into effect next season. It’s easy to forget now, but the idea of a playoff …

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

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

Associated Press  

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 …

Who’s in the CFB playoffs? College football’s selection committee picks Alabama over Florida State.
1 year ago

Who’s in the CFB playoffs? College football’s selection committee picks Alabama over Florida State.

Slate  

The College Football Playoff selection committee has an easy job most years, and the committee members do it well. Best can mean many things, but in the context that playoff officials have used to explain it, the concept of “best team” is separate from “best résumé.” As College Football Playoff Executive Director Bill Hancock said last week, “ ‘Most deserving’ …

What the College Football Playoff got wrong: Leaving out Florida State
1 year ago

What the College Football Playoff got wrong: Leaving out Florida State

New York Times  

Next year, all this College Football Playoff arguing will be moot with the CFP expanding to 12 teams. There wasn’t a second-best team in the Big 12 this year, but Oklahoma State beat Oklahoma, the team Texas stumbled against and, as expected, Texas hammered the Cowboys Saturday. That wasn’t going to help Texas’ cause, but do we just forget that …

Loaded field of CFP contenders for last 4-team playoff fuels championship weekend drama
1 year ago

Loaded field of CFP contenders for last 4-team playoff fuels championship weekend drama

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! Florida State The Seminoles are perfect and in playoff position heading into their Atlantic Coast Conference title game against Louisville, but an injury to star quarterback Jordan Travis creates some uncertainty. If Florida State muddles past Louisville and Alabama beats Georgia in a competitive game, leaving …

College Football Playoff close to moving to 5+7 model for 12-team format starting in 2024: Source
1 year, 1 month ago

College Football Playoff close to moving to 5+7 model for 12-team format starting in 2024: Source

New York Times  

The Athletic has live coverage of the College Football Playoff rankings release. The College Football Playoff is close to adjusting its 12-team format next year and moving to a 5+7 model, with five automatic bids for conference champions, instead of the original 6+6. The CFP management committee, made up of the 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Jack …

CFP puts off decisions on format tweaks with Pac-12 still in limbo, hears from potential TV partners
1 year, 2 months ago

CFP puts off decisions on format tweaks with Pac-12 still in limbo, hears from potential TV partners

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! The number of spots reserved for conference champions when the College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams next year remained open for discussion Wednesday as administrators who manage the postseason wrapped up meetings that mostly focused on potential television partners. College Football Playoff Executive Director Bill …

With Pac-12 unsettled, CFP managers meet to make difficult decision on number of reserved bids
1 year, 2 months ago

With Pac-12 unsettled, CFP managers meet to make difficult decision on number of reserved bids

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! College Football Playoff managers will meet this week, but with the future of the Pac-12 still unsettled, it will be difficult to make a final decision on whether the number of places reserved for conference champions in the soon-to-be expanded field should be six or five. …

Analysis: Conference realignment has mangled the college sports map, but to what benefit?
1 year, 3 months ago

Analysis: Conference realignment has mangled the college sports map, but to what benefit?

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! Beyond dollars moving from one bank account to another it’s hard to see the overall benefit, but the most disruptive round of conference realignment at the highest level of college sports appears to be almost over — at least for the near future. We’ll probably have …

ACC becomes latest super conference, expanding cross-country by adding Stanford, Cal and SMU
1 year, 3 months ago

ACC becomes latest super conference, expanding cross-country by adding Stanford, Cal and SMU

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! “Joining the ACC will ensure the Power Conference competitive infrastructure and long-term media revenues that are critical for our student-athletes to compete.” For the ACC, adding three schools will increase media rights revenue from its long-term deal with ESPN and allow the conference to spread much …

Realignment prompts fresh look at the number of automatic bids in 12-team College Football Playoff
1 year, 3 months ago

Realignment prompts fresh look at the number of automatic bids in 12-team College Football Playoff

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! IRVING, Texas — The conference commissioners who manage the College Football Playoff met Wednesday for the first time since a wave of realignment tore apart the Pac-12, raising the possibility that the number of automatic bids in the 12-team postseason format to be implemented next year …

Conference realignment reset: Where everyone stands as 2023 football season approaches
1 year, 4 months ago

Conference realignment reset: Where everyone stands as 2023 football season approaches

New York Times  

The fallout from college sports’ frenzied summer of conference realignment has bled into the start of football season, and with Week 0 just days away, there are a few loose ends still to be settled after six Pac-12 schools jumped for the Big Ten and Big 12 within the span of a month. But that’s not our priority.” If the …

Conference realignment shakes up recruiting landscape as Big Ten, Big 12, SEC widen footprints
1 year, 4 months ago

Conference realignment shakes up recruiting landscape as Big Ten, Big 12, SEC widen footprints

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! With Southern California, UCLA, Washington and Oregon leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten next year, the sprawling conference will boast programs from the West Coast all the way to New Jersey. “If you were a kid in Arizona and you were a little hesitant to …

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey dampens speculation on further expansion
1 year, 4 months ago

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey dampens speculation on further expansion

New York Times  

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said Tuesday his conference is not looking to jump in on the current realignment phase and that his presidents and chancellors have met and agreed that they’re happy with the 16-team roster once Oklahoma and Texas join next year. Here’s what you need to know: Sankey spoke publicly for the first time since the Pac-12 imploded, …

Predicting conference realignment’s unpredictable future: 5 scenarios for 2033 and beyond
1 year, 5 months ago

Predicting conference realignment’s unpredictable future: 5 scenarios for 2033 and beyond

New York Times  

Four years ago, The Athletic admirably — and, as it turns out, foolishly — attempted to predict the future of college sports when my colleague Stewart Mandel took a stab at what the conference landscape would look like five or 10 years into the future. “But I also know that the SEC can’t sit still and allow the Big Ten …

College football conference realignment timeline: 124 years of drama, money and bitterness
1 year, 5 months ago

College football conference realignment timeline: 124 years of drama, money and bitterness

New York Times  

The Western Conference, known today as the Big Ten, was formed in 1896 by the universities of Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Purdue, Wisconsin and Chicago. GO DEEPER Journey back to Sewanee, a founding SEC member that has no regrets Dec. 12, 1948: Nearly a decade after original member Chicago dropped football, the Western Conference becomes the Big Ten again by …

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey on advantages of 9-game football schedule format
1 year, 6 months ago

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey on advantages of 9-game football schedule format

New York Times  

DESTIN, Fla. — SEC commissioner Greg Sankey privately has made his preference for a football schedule format clear to his members. Georgia president Jere Morehead, whose school is seen as favoring nine games, said last week that getting more “compensation” from the conference’s media partner — ESPN — was needed if it would add a ninth conference game. … If …

Schultz: If SEC doesn’t go to 9-game schedule, criticism is justified
1 year, 6 months ago

Schultz: If SEC doesn’t go to 9-game schedule, criticism is justified

New York Times  

ATLANTA — The czars of the SEC congregate this week on a beach resort, and they could begin the first meeting and every annual meeting the same: “Gentleman, we’re all rich and we rule the world, or at least the only part that matters to us. But there’s a lot of media on the other side of this door, so …

AP source: Rose Bowl clears way for 12-team CFP in 2024
2 years ago

AP source: Rose Bowl clears way for 12-team CFP in 2024

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! Rose Bowl game organizers cleared the way for the College Football Playoff to expand to 12 teams starting in the 2024 season, informing CFP officials Wednesday they are willing to alter agreements to accommodate a new format to decide the national champion. The university leaders who …

Big 12 to go without divisions as 14-team league in 2023-24
2 years, 2 months ago

Big 12 to go without divisions as 14-team league in 2023-24

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! — The Big 12 will operate without divisions in football next season, when the arrival of Central Florida, Cincinnati, BYU and Houston creates a 14-team conference and ends its current round-robin scheduling framework. “Excited about what it will look like,” Yormark said during Big 12 women’s …

Could a 12-team College Football Playoff arrive before 2026? Here’s what we know
2 years, 2 months ago

Could a 12-team College Football Playoff arrive before 2026? Here’s what we know

New York Times  

ROSEMONT, Ill. — With a 12-team College Football Playoff format having already been approved for the 2026 season, CFP executive director Bill Hancock said after two days of meetings this week that expansion any earlier would be “icing on the cake.” “We’re going to have our cake in 2026,” Hancock said Wednesday. That’s what we’re working on now.” The CFP …

College Football Playoff expansion: What’s next? The task(s) before the commissioners
2 years, 3 months ago

College Football Playoff expansion: What’s next? The task(s) before the commissioners

New York Times  

The College Football Playoff is expanding its field from four to 12 teams, and it is doing so in time for the 2026 regular season at the latest. Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren, who spent two decades working in the NFL, told The Athletic last month that he hoped the league’s new partners — the Big Ten just signed a …

A 12-team College Football Playoff in the BCS/CFP eras: Who would have made it?
2 years, 3 months ago

A 12-team College Football Playoff in the BCS/CFP eras: Who would have made it?

New York Times  

An expanded 12-team College Football Playoff is coming soon, opening the door to far more schools having legitimate hopes of making it into the field, even if the number of teams that can actually win it may still be limited. Twelve current Group of 5 teams would have made at least one appearance, led by Boise State in eight of …

College Football Playoff to expand to 12 teams by ’26 season
2 years, 3 months ago

College Football Playoff to expand to 12 teams by ’26 season

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! After 14 1/2 months of haggling over details and questioning motivations, a plan to expand the College Football Playoff to 12 teams was finally approved Friday, setting the stage for a multibillion-dollar tournament as soon as the 2024 season. “This was a very historic day for …

College Football Playoff will expand from four to 12 teams by 2026
2 years, 3 months ago

College Football Playoff will expand from four to 12 teams by 2026

LA Times  

The university presidents who oversee the College Football Playoff voted Friday to expand the postseason model for determining a national champion from four to 12 teams no later than the 2026 season. If the new format can be implemented before the current 12-year contract with ESPN expires after the 2025 season, the conferences could make an additional $450 million over …

AP sources: Presidents meeting to discuss CFP expansion
2 years, 3 months ago

AP sources: Presidents meeting to discuss CFP expansion

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! Two people familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Wednesday that CFP’s Board of Managers, led by Mississippi State President Mark Keenum, is set to convene by video conference. Back in February, CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock announced expansion talks among the commissioners had …

Changing Pac-12 still seeking next CFP appearance
2 years, 4 months ago

Changing Pac-12 still seeking next CFP appearance

Associated Press  

The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! “This conference has been really deep and it’s really hard to run the table in this conference,” Stanford coach David Shaw said. Our conference, if you slip up, you’re going to get beat.” FAVORED UTES Utah won the Pac-12 championship a year ago and is favored …

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