Charles Fischer Administrator No. 1 Share Posted February 19 This is a very interesting article that gives good thoughts about the B1G-SEC Playoff preference, and why... "Setting up playoff access accordingly isn’t creating 3 separate tiers; it’s simply acknowledging that 3 tiers already exist and constructing the system to match reality." Why the B1G and SEC Proposed Playoff Changes Are Good for College Football - On3 WWW.ON3.COM The Big Ten and the SEC want to alter the playoff model giving them four automatic bids each. Here's why I like it. "In reality, neither the Big Ten nor the SEC trusts the selection committee to be able to properly evaluate teams for at-large bids across conferences while the playing field is so completely unlevelled." 1 1 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 2 Share Posted February 19 Thank you, Charles. We used to have the hypocrisy of the student-athlete. Now, we have the hypocrisy of scribes Stewart Mandel, Dennis Dodd, and others who are making far more bank covering CFB than they could have imagined beefing about the two most successful 'companies' in a big business being at the forefront of the business. Mandel's, The Athletic is owned by the New York Times. When the Times bought The Athletic, Mandel scored. If 134 teams were on an equal competitive CFB footing and the NCAA had a broadcast monopoly, Mandel would be shuffling to make a dime as a beat writer. Dodd's CBS is part of a consortium led by Fox, that pays B1G money to the B1G conference. Does Dodd want the Pac-2, 7, whatever, to have veto power over how the CFB postseason is managed? Last season, 48 of the 50 most-watched CFB games involved a B1G and, or, an SEC team. From the inception of the BCS in 1998, through 2026, the Power 2 would have had four teams in an expanded PO field far more often than not. But, the PO is better because 13 people who refuse to disclose how they choose to pick and seed the PO field decide that a G5 team, Boise, should be arbitrarily seeded ahead of B12 champ ASU, thus sending ASU to play in Atlanta instead of playing in Phoenix. Horse Hockey! A 16-team field with eight automatic Power 2 qualifiers and a 14-team field with the same qualifiers, 4-4-2-2-1-1, gives millions of dollars to the B12 it did not earn in 2024-25 and assures the ACC of two participants without Clemson coming in through the back door. How is 'THIS' injurious to the long-term health of college football? Injurious to the ACC, B12, and G5? In a capitalistic system, two competitors have separated themselves from the field. What's new? 1 1 3 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
30Duck Moderator No. 3 Share Posted February 19 On 2/19/2025 at 3:42 PM, Jon Joseph said: In a capitalistic system, two competitors have separated themselves from the field. What's new? Absolutely true. The best line I read in the article is that this would see the SEC move to a 9 game schedule, I must also say that relieving the Committee of anything is a step in the right direction, but the committee wasn't at fault for the seeding. They had the teams ranked properly; the format caused the damage, as Rece Davis had to clarify each week on the ridiculous Reveal Show. 1 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GODUCKS15 No. 4 Share Posted February 20 It's never going to be fair as long as a human is involved. CFB needs to go the route of the NFL with divisions and conferences. Win games and you're in. None of the who beat who by how much phooey. Probably won't see it in my life time but it would eliminate all the sour grapes. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 5 Share Posted February 20 An Update on Yesterday's Power 2 Meeting. Big Ten, SEC leaders discuss College Football Playoff changes with seeding, auto bids among pressing topics - CBSSports.com WWW.CBSSPORTS.COM A nine-game SEC schedule could also be on the horizon with an expanded playoff format 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 6 Share Posted February 20 Commissioners Petitti and Sankey Speak and Show Respect for Other Less Successful Conferences. SEC and Big Ten are prepared to push for changes to CFP seeding in 2025 APNEWS.COM The Big Ten and Southeastern Conference will push for changes in the way College Football Playoff teams are seeded next season to coincide more with how teams are ranked by the CFP selection... The coverage of playoff expansion from Stewart Mandel, Dennis Dood, and other well-known college football journalists has been way over the top. A 14-team or a 16-team playoff with guaranteed spots for the B1G, SEC, ACC, B12, G5, and Notre Dame, if ranked high enough, will not kill the sport any more than expanding to 12 teams killed the sport. If all conferences had rosters equivalent to Power 2 rosters, played the same number of games, and had similar strength of schedules, four spots for the B1G and the SEC would not be necessary but this, of course, is not what we have in college football. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
30Duck Moderator No. 7 Share Posted February 20 On 2/20/2025 at 10:48 AM, Jon Joseph said: If all conferences had rosters equivalent to Power 2 rosters, played the same number of games, and had similar strength of schedules, four spots for the B1G and the SEC would not be necessary but this, of course, is not what we have in college football. With the transfer portal & NIL, the myth of "Student athlete has really been shoved aside. Now I believe the want for the college game to stay different from the NFL is becoming antiquated. Uniformity in rosters, Number of games, SoS will help, through NFL model parity, the expanded playoffs being competitive and eliminate the need for automatic byes. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 8 Share Posted February 28 As anticipated, No Playoff Format Changes in 2025-26. Payback in 2026-27? College Football Playoff format for next season still in limbo as commissioners punt on making seeding changes SPORTS.YAHOO.COM Playoff executives explored changes to the 2025 postseason Tuesday but came to no decision on a proposal from the Big Ten and SEC to alter the playoff seeding. Why no change to the cocked up seeding format? Here's the long answer, there are too many cooks in the kitchen and only two of them know how to boil water. What is causing delay in College Football Playoff leaders deciding seeding format for 2025 WWW.USATODAY.COM There was no decision on the format for the College Football Playoff in 2025 after a meeting in Dallas. Why the leaders have yet to find solution. "Leaders?' This includes the Commish of the Pac-7 + Gonzo. I rest my case. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Rocks No. 9 Share Posted March 2 Why should Notre Dame get an automatic bid if they are a top 14 team? I think they should be made to join a conference like everyone else. Just because they have a lot of fans nationally doesn't make them better than other teams, they should have to earn their place, they are being treated like they are special. Garbage. 3 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 10 Share Posted March 6 Urban Meyer Believes that Four Guaranteed Playoff Spots for the SEC and the B1G Come 2026 is a Done Deal. SEC and Big Ten will have four bids in "unchallenged" CFP, analyst guarantees SATURDAYBLITZ.COM The College Football Playoff is on the verge of another major shake-up, and if you ask Urban Meyer, the outcome is already set in stone. According to the forme With four certain PO spots, a B1G/SEC scheduling agreement is odds on to come to fruition as are conference champion play-in games the final week of the season, No. 1 versus No. 8, etc. In the ACC and the Big 12, No. 1 versus No. 4, and No. 2 versus NO. 3 three could happen. SEC vs. B1G out-of-conference games and PO play-in games will bring in additional money. Which is needed; especially, if the House settlement is approved in April. A guaranty of four teams is not greedy. It accurately reflects today's marketplace. [Note that if Champ Play-In weekend happens, this would require a change in the SC and Notre Dame schedules that have the game played in LA on the last Saturday every other year. 4 guaranteed B1G/SEC teams in the PO means Notre Dame will find it more difficult to schedule outside of the enabling ACC] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 11 Share Posted March 6 4 SEC Automatic PO Qualifiers Likely leads to 9 Conference Games. Whining Will Come from the Lower level SEC teams. 3 teams that will be in trouble if the SEC moves to a 9-game schedule SATURDAYBLITZ.COM The SEC has been flirting with the idea of moving to a nine-game conference schedule for a while now, and Greg Sankey just mentioned that it could happen sooner And a team like South Carolina that is scheduled to play Miami and Clemson in 2026. However, with 4 PO spots guaranteed, losses out-of-conference will not keep a team out of the PO. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 12 Share Posted March 6 Follow the $. If the money is there, playing 10 B1G and SEC games makes sense. 1 B1G/SEC game out-of-conference and if Florida wants to play Florida State in the 12th game, fine. With four spots for the B1G and the SEC based on conference record only, why not play bigger games for bigger money? If Big Ten, SEC programs want to keep fans engaged, they should move to 10-game conference schedules - CBSSports.com WWW.CBSSPORTS.COM Marquee nonconference games and spring games are in danger, so keep fans interested with annual contempt I like the photo. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 13 Share Posted March 7 When deciding whether a 4-4-2-2-1-1 Format is 'fair,' consider Bill Connolly's strength of schedule (SOS) ranking using Connolly's SP+ preseason rankings. ESPN's Top 40 strength of schedule ratings for 2025 college football season revealed - On3 WWW.ON3.COM . As Connolly notes: 'The SOS rating is the projected win percentage an average top 5 team could expect against your team's schedule.' (I have no idea what an 'average top 5 team' looks like?) The SP+ calculations place an emphasis on recruiting. Accordingly, SEC teams, not without justification, are for the most part ranked at the top of SP+. Even though the SEC only plays eight conference games, a larger percentage of in-conference games will have top 25 SEC teams playing one another. Nevertheless, Connolly's top 25, and top 40, support both the SEC and the B1G having four guaranteed spots in the playoff, with the eight teams seeded as ranked. 16 SEC teams, the entire conference, are ranked in Connolly's top 25, with eight B1G teams, one ACC team, and ZERO B12 teams. The Top 40 has 17 B1G teams ranked, 16 SEC Teams, all in the Top 25, seven ACC teams, and ZERO B12 teams. So, why all of the whining? The B12, a conference with no Blue Chip Roster teams, should be thankful for two multi-million playoff pieces of the pie. In the ACC, Clemson and Miami have Blue Chip Rosters. The only team in the ACC ranking in the top 25 of the SOS rankings is Syracuse at 14. The Orange open against Tennessee and is one of the ACC teams to draw Notre Dame in 2025, playing in South Bend. (Syracuse also plays UConn and has a brush with Colgate out-of-conference.) Syracuse's schedule is ranked 2nd in the ACC in 2025. A 17-team conference has only seven members playing schedules in the top 40? If the ACC doesn't like a guaranty of two teams, then stop enabling Notre Dame as an Independent. Notre Dame, close to a lock for the plus one spot, equals one-half of an ACC team. But Notre Dame shares ZIP football playoff money with the conference. By every metric including the difficulty of the schedules, assuring the Power 2 both have four teams in the playoff is fair. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 14 Share Posted March 7 Go to 16 teams so there is no doubt that any challengers that could win....is in. That leaves room for the occasional ACC or Big12 team that is exceptional and third in their conference. 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 15 Share Posted March 7 On 3/7/2025 at 12:24 PM, Charles Fischer said: Go to 16 teams so there is no doubt that any challengers that could win....is in. That leaves room for the occasional ACC or Big12 team that is exceptional and third in their conference. I agree, but this would require a change in the regular season start date, and require conference champ games folded into the regular season. Both of which are doable and should happen. Still need a mandated spot for a G5 team if not in the top 16 and possibly, a B12 team. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatOrlando No. 16 Share Posted March 9 (edited) Back in the day I bet NFL owners or fans never thought the AFL would ever rival them, but they did and eventually they merged to give us a better league. Same thing with the NBA and ABA. How many people thought the BCS was going to destroy college football? Many more thought a four team playoff was the absolute end and it was in a way to the meaning of games like the Rose Bowl or Orange Bowl. But what's hurt college football more than having real games determine matters in late January is the loss of playing for ones team. The transfer portal, coach sniping and now revenue distribution is making us pay attention to the economics of what was once something designed to give us a distraction from the real world. We don't want to hear about spread sheets or taxes. We don't want to hear about grown men lying to young men involving NIL deals or two guys in their 60's having soap opera drama during the season. I learned more about Jim Knowles personal life involving his girlfriend wanting him to go to Oklahoma because she lives there and then about his Pennsylvania roots and always wanting to coach or play there....blah blah blah. It's a 60 year old man that wanted a pay raise, plain and simple. But that's what the media gives us. We can't have spring games anymore because coaches are afraid of having to put their talent on display so another team doesn't tamper and steal them away. It's not the playoffs or "super leagues" that are the threat. We already have super leagues. The SEC and B1G have so many members that they can't even allow all of them to compete in their basketball tournaments. The ACC has two programs that play in California. What's hurting the sport is the fake enforcement committee that has lined their pockets for years off the lies of amateur sports. Now that cat is out of the bag and there are no rules. There's no way to get what's lost back. The only thing to do is adjust and put real guidelines in place. If some sort of power vacuum is filled with an SEC and B1G autonomy than so be it. The ACC and Big 12 don't have the power to say no. But they can negotiate for their inclusion and keep seats at the table. Who knows, maybe all four conferences can maintain some sort of permanent separation that allows a true Cinderella like an ASU to make a real run. They should also realize as a whole how great it was to have people tuning into the Boise vs Wyoming game in November because of the playoff indications . Keep a seat or two open for that to happen again. Edited March 9 by GatOrlando 1 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 17 Share Posted March 9 A 16-team PO using the final PO Committee Rankings - 16 Clemson at 1 OREGON 9 Boise State at 8 Indiana 13 Miami at 4 Penn State 12 ASU at 5 Notre Dame 15 So. Carolina at 2 Georgia 10 SMU at 7 Tennessee 14 Ole Miss at 3 Texas 11 Alabama at 6 Ohio State 6 SEC/ 4 B1G/ 3 ACC/ 1 B12/ 1 Independent/ 1 G5 Greg Sankey would have loved this format. After the PO and bowl games, Illinois and not South Carolina should have been in the field. BYU would have had a legit beef over Ole Miss and not BYU being in the field. The B12 should rush to vote for any format that has two B12 teams in the field. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 18 Share Posted March 11 A Dozen Thoughts on the 2025-26 Playoff. Swing Away! Ranking the 12 biggest swing factors in next season's College Football Playoff - Saturday Down South WWW.SATURDAYDOWNSOUTH.COM Ranking the players and coaches with the potential to dramatically alter the College Football Playoff picture in 2025. Dante and the Ducks are on the list. 'Washington is Washington.' OBD is back in the PO and wins at least one game. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 19 Share Posted March 15 Go with the 4-4-2-2-1-1 format (Format) with the Power 4 determining their participating teams would have the PO Committee, assuming Notre Dame finishes ranked in the Committee's top 14 and captures the Plus 1 spot, only deciding on which G6 team makes the field and the seeding of the field. This Format, in all likelihood, would lead to the SEC playing nine conference games. (And more $ for the SEC .) The Format would encourage elimination of the Conference Champ games in favor of having a flex-scheduled Championship Week in the last game of the regular season, with games on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The top two teams in a conference would not have to play a 13th game before the 1st playoff round of games. And the playoff could commence a week earlier. Adopt Championship Week and uniformly open the season in Week Zero, and the playoff championship game could be contested on January 1st, which would draw far more eyeballs than playing the game in late January. Championship Week would also result in more valuable game inventory and more $ for the Power 2 in particular. Based on conference standings after Week 12 in 2024, the B1G and the SEC would have played these games on Championship Week; playoff play-in games. (In 2026 and thereafter, the conference standings after Week 11 would determine the matchups.) B1G - 8. Minnesota at 1. OREGON / 7. Michigan at 2. Indiana / 6. Iowa at 3. Penn State / 5. Illinois at 4. Ohio State. SEC - 8. South Carolina at 1. Texas / 7. LSU at 2. Georgia / 6. Alabama at 3. Tennessee / 5. Ole Miss at 4. Missouri. These eight games would involve only two rematches from the regular season, which says a lot about mega-conference scheduling. The rematches could be reduced or eliminated by having Iowa and Michigan moving one spot, with Iowa playing at Indiana, and Michigan playing at Penn State. In the SEC, a one spot move would see Alabama at Georgia, and LSU at Tennessee. Game inventory, especially as adjusted above, would bring in mucho dinero for the Power 2 and also increase the value of the preceding conference games. Teams jockeying for home games on Championship Week would make the regular season games more impactful. Adopting the Format would also allow for the B1G/SEC Conference Challenge games to be played. With four teams each in the playoff field, losing a Challenge game would not hurt a team's chances of making the playoffs. Using The Athletics' final 2024-25 season rankings from No. 1 to 134, these out-of-conference games, spaced out during the regular season, would result in six Top 25 vs Top 25 marquee games. 5. Georgia at 1. Ohio State / 2. OREGON at 6. Texas / 8. Tennessee at 4. Penn State / 10. Indiana at 13. Ole Miss/ 15. Alabama at 14. Illinois / 21. Michigan at 16. South Carolina. Other enticing matchups: Iowa vs. Missouri, Nebraska vs. Florida, USC vs. A&M, and UCLA vs. Oklahoma. I'm reasonably certain that OBD vs. Texas would result in a B1G-ger payday than the Ducks vs. Oregon State and Texas vs. UTEP. With direct payment to athletes on the horizon, cuts in football roster size, and nonrevenue sports at risk of being cut, the Power 2 need to do everything possible to increase the revenue flow from Money-Maker Football. It's not Greed, it's Smart Business. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smith72 Moderator No. 20 Share Posted March 15 Jon Joseph, my brain would explode trying to figure out the things you do so easily and well written! Thanks for your cogent contributions to the playoff possibilities. I say name you the Czar of College football. Thanks! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB89 No. 21 Share Posted March 15 I'm not a fan of the proposed Championship Week if it includes forcing the conference champion to be included. Notre Dame would get a direct path to the playoffs just by finishing in the top 14. This proposal would require the regular season champions of the Big 10 and SEC to win an additional game to make the playoffs while Notre Dame gets an easier path to the playoffs. I would give the 1st and 2nd place teams in the Big 10 and SEC automatic berths into the playoffs just like Notre Dame. Let 3rd place play 6th place and 4th place play 5th place to get the final two playoff spots for both the Big 10 and SEC. This would give additional TV games to replace the conference championship games but also reward teams for their regular season success. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 22 Share Posted March 16 On 3/15/2025 at 6:43 PM, JB89 said: I'm not a fan of the proposed Championship Week if it includes forcing the conference champion to be included. Notre Dame would get a direct path to the playoffs just by finishing in the top 14. This proposal would require the regular season champions of the Big 10 and SEC to win an additional game to make the playoffs while Notre Dame gets an easier path to the playoffs. I would give the 1st and 2nd place teams in the Big 10 and SEC automatic berths into the playoffs just like Notre Dame. Let 3rd place play 6th place and 4th place play 5th place to get the final two playoff spots for both the Big 10 and SEC. This would give additional TV games to replace the conference championship games but also reward teams for their regular season success. JB, good thoughts on how a championship should be determined. 1. In every other post-season tournament, the top 2 teams do not get a pass. Michigan State won the B1G regular season title by 3 games. Now, Sparty will have to watch today to see whether 4-seed Michigan or 5-seed Wisconsin is crowned the 2025 B1G champion. 2. At the close of the regular season in the B1G in 2024, Indiana was the 2nd best team in the conference and an Ohio State team that blew out the Hoosiers in Columbus finished fourth. This is the result of mega-conference scheduling that for the most part had Indiana playing against thin air. In the SEC, Texas finished 1st in the regular season. But Georgia with the opportunity to play Texas a second time and win both games deserved the title. Georgia's in-conference schedule in 2024 was far more difficult than the Longhorns conference schedule. As noted above, only two of the hypothetical eight games played by the Power Two at the end of last season resulted in a rematch of a regular season game. It's a small sample size, but one that is again indicative of the hit or miss nature of mega-conference regular season schedules. Another example, in 2025 OBD misses Michigan and Ohio State. In 2027, OBD plays Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State. 3. I feel like I should take a cold shower every time I raise the issue of money, but no media entity is going to step up with additional money if 1st-place Oregon rematches with Purdue and 2nd-place Indiana plays Northwestern in the 12th game of the regular season. Thanks again for your thoughts. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB89 No. 23 Share Posted March 16 (edited) On 3/16/2025 at 4:27 AM, Jon Joseph said: JB, good thoughts on how a championship should be determined. 1. In every other post-season tournament, the top 2 teams do not get a pass. Michigan State won the B1G regular season title by 3 games. Now, Sparty will have to watch today to see whether 4-seed Michigan or 5-seed Wisconsin is crowned the 2025 B1G champion. Jon, it is fun to have these discussions. I would not compare B1G or SEC MBB league tournaments to a CFB championship week because in MBB it is not win or you are out of the national tournament. Michigan State can lose in the MBB conference tournament and still receive the highest seed for any B1G teams that make March Madness. While in the proposed 1 vs 8 CFB championship week game, if the #1 seed is upset by #8 they will be out of the playoffs. A comparison could be made with the smaller MBB conferences that only receive one March Madness bid. I have always thought those conferences were making a mistake by having a conference tournament. Their conference tournament usually results in their best team not making March Madness. They would be better off sending their top team every year. Get a better seed and possibly some victories that could lead to multiple league teams making the tournament in future years. Thanks for the discussion. Edited March 16 by JB89 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 24 Share Posted March 17 On 3/16/2025 at 5:08 PM, JB89 said: Jon, it is fun to have these discussions. I would not compare B1G or SEC MBB league tournaments to a CFB championship week because in MBB it is not win or you are out of the national tournament. Michigan State can lose in the MBB conference tournament and still receive the highest seed for any B1G teams that make March Madness. While in the proposed 1 vs 8 CFB championship week game, if the #1 seed is upset by #8 they will be out of the playoffs. A comparison could be made with the smaller MBB conferences that only receive one March Madness bid. I have always thought those conferences were making a mistake by having a conference tournament. Their conference tournament usually results in their best team not making March Madness. They would be better off sending their top team every year. Get a better seed and possibly some victories that could lead to multiple league teams making the tournament in future years. Thanks for the discussion. Yes, I love the pondering. Thanks for your thoughts. The 4-4-2-2-1-1 proposal includes the P4 conferences deciding which of their teams go to the playoffs. In your example, if No. 8 upset the No.1 seed and the 2, 3, and 4 seeds held serve, it would not surprise me to see B1G 1,2,3, and 8 representing the conference. The No. 4 seed being behind the 8-Ball would not be happy but the Champ Week money would still spend. Not apples vs. apples as the seeding is determined by a PO Committee, but Michigan defeated Wisconsin to win the B1G basketball title and Michigan is a five seed, Wisconsin a three seed, and Michigan State a two seed. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph Moderator No. 25 Share Posted March 27 Here's More Support for the 4-4-2-2-1-1 Playoff format. Athlon has ranked the ten easiest schedules in CFB in 2025 with No. 1 being the easiest. 1. Texas Tech - The Raiders three OOC opponents won a total of eight games in 2024. Three of the nine B12 opponents had winning records in 2024. 2. Virginia - Yes, Virginia, there is a cupcake factory in Charlottesville. 3. Wake Forest - Did Jack Dickert leave the Pac-Whatever for an easier schedule? 4. North Carolina - Billy Boy, you have no excuses. 5. CAL - Wilcox better take the Bears to a bowl. 6. BYU - One of two B12 front runners on the list. 7. Kansas - After the B-Ball team went out in the 1st round, the Jayhawks needed this. 8. Nebraska - With this lightweight schedule, no wonder the Spring game was Ruhled out. 9. ASU - The Sun Devil was not going to allow the Cougars to have an easier schedule. 10. UCF - This schedule should keep Frosty's seat cool. Summary: Five B12 teams. Four ACC teams. 1 B1G team. Zero SEC teams. RES IPSA LOQUITUR and thus, I Rest My Case. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
