It remains to be seen if No. 4 Notre Dame will remain in the top four for the College Football Playoff at the end of the season, but time is winding down to the big day when we find out if the Irish make the four-team playoff field. Notre Dame reaching the playoff is one of the scenarios in play that would cause plenty of uproar for change in the postseason change, because not only would one power conference be left out of the playoff, but a second would miss out as well.
The debate is whether a one-loss Notre Dame is a lock for the College Football Playoff. With one loss, Notre Dame would finish the season with a win over a Stanford team that could end up being the Pac-12 champion. The game regular season tilt between the Irish and Cardinal could be a playoff elimination game late in the season, but we can cross that bridge when we get there (Stanford still has to get by Oregon today). Having this debate can be fun now, but the truth is there are too many variables left to solve before figuring out where Notre Dame stacks up against other potential playoff options.
Regardless of the company line coming from the College Football Playoff representatives saying the playoff will not consider expansion until the current contract is expired, if Notre Dame makes the playoff then the momentum toward an eight-team playoff field will pick up steam rather quickly. Two power conferences being left out of the playoff would be the tipping point for playoff expansion, and it is a very realistic possibility this season.
So, here’s my idea for an eight-team playoff field.
- 8 team playoff field selected and seeded by College Football Playoff selection committee
- 5 spots reserved for power conference champions from ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC
- 1 spot reserved for top Group of Five champion from AAC, C-USA, MAC, Mountain West or Sun Belt as determined by selection committee
- 2 at-large bids awarded to top teams as determined by selection committee. At-large teams do not get a home game unless they are ranked one or two by the selection committee.
- Top 4 teams as seeded by selection committee host first-round of the playoff week after Army-Navy Game.
- Semi-finals and national championship played as currently scheduled in existing bowls for semifinals and host cities for championship games
Thoughts?