In yet another sign that a new college football season is getting close to kicking off, the College Football Playoff has released the important dates and protocol for 2018.
The first set of playing rankings, the CFP confirmed, will be released on Tuesday, Oct. 30 from 7-8 p.m. ET. That initial will be the first of five released before the final CFP rankings that will set the four-team playoff field as well as New Year’s Six Bowls will be unveiled on Sunday, Dec,. 2, starting at noon ET.
Tuesday, October 30, 7-8 p.m. ET
Tuesday, November 6, 9-9:30 p.m. ET*
Tuesday, November 13, 7-8 p.m. ET
Tuesday, November 20, 7-8 p.m. ET
Tuesday, November 27, 7-7:30 p.m. ET
Sunday, December 2, Noon-4 p.m. ET
*Approximate start time will be 9 p.m. for the Champions Classic basketball doubleheader. The rankings will be revealed live between the Michigan State vs. Kansas and Duke vs. Kentucky games.
In January of this year, the CFP announced six new members of the committee that will select the 2018 playoff field:
- Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione
- Former journalist/current journalism professor Paola Boivin
- Former Rice/Clemson/Arkansas/Air Force head coach Ken Hatfield
- College and NFL Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott
- Georgia Tech athletic director Todd Stansbury
- Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin
The six new additions bring the committee back to a dozen voters, including Robert Morris president Christopher B. Howard (term expires in Feb. of 2020), former Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer (2020), Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith (2020), former Southern Miss head coach Jeff Bower (2019), former Central Michigan head coach Herb Deromedi (2019) and Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens (2019).
Mullens will serve as the selection committee’s new chairperson.
“We’ve had four very successful seasons and I look forward to a fifth,” said Rob Mullens in a statement. “We’re in good shape heading into this upcoming year.”
In addition to rankings release dates, the CFP also reaffirmed its recusal policy.The selection committee recusal policy remains consistent with previous years, which states, “A recused member shall not participate in any votes involving the team from which the individual is recused.”
“A recused member is permitted to answer only factual questions about the institution from which the member is recused but shall not be present during any deliberations regarding that team’s selection or seeding. Recused members shall not participate in discussions regarding the placement of the recused team into a bowl game.
“If a committee member or an immediate family member, e.g., spouse, sibling or child, (a) is compensated by a school, (b) provides professional services for a school, or (c) is on the coaching staff or administrative staff at a school or is a football student-athlete at a school, that member will be recused. Such compensation shall include not only direct employment, but also current paid consulting arrangements, deferred compensation (e.g., contract payments continuing after employment has ended) or other benefits. The committee will have the option to add other recusals if special circumstances arise.
Recusals for the 2018-19 season are as follows:
Arizona State – Paola Boivin
Central Michigan – Herb Deromedi
Florida – Scott Stricklin
Georgia Tech – Todd Stansbury
Ohio State – Gene Smith
Oklahoma – Frank Beamer, Joe Castiglione
Oregon – Rob Mullens
Southern Mississippi – Jeff Bower
Virginia Tech – Frank Beamer