The world of college football, and really college sports in general, has been turned on its head in the last couple years, what with the advent of players being able to make money off of their name, image, and likeness (affectionately referred to as NIL) and transfer between schools without sitting out any time. It’s the damn wild, wild West out there, and yet, from a viewership standpoint, college football is as popular as ever.
As anyone with a brain knows, most of these changes to the sport, structurally and otherwise, have to do with money. When you look at the janky structure of the power conferences — a Big 10 with 18 teams, a Big 12 with 16 teams, and Atlantic Coast Conference that contains Cal and Stanford — money is the only explanation really.
With that, we now discuss the new 12 team College Football Playoff, which for a decade has only involved four teams. Expansion like this has everything to do with money — ticket money, sponsorship money, and the golden goose, media rights money. So while all of these changes feel a tad dirty, because of the mercenary slant, I myself am still counting down the days to the 12 team playoff extravaganza.
To that end, the College Football Playoff committee announced the schedule for the postseason on Wednesday. This is going to be amazing:
Okay, here are a few thoughts, and items you need to know:
We get on campus playoff games!
This is something for which I’ve been clamoring for a long time. The atmosphere on a regular season college football Saturday at the schools in this type of conversation is already off the charts. Can you imagine what an actual elimination game is going to feel like? In early December, possibly in VERY cold weather in some places? Wow. For a frame of reference, here is what the first round playoff games would have been if 2023 had been played under a 12 team format:
No. 12 Liberty (13-0, Conference USA champion) at No. 5 Florida State (12-1, ACC champion)
No. 11 Ole Miss (10-2, at-large) at No. 6 Georgia (12-1, at-large)
No. 10 Penn State (10-2, at-large) at No. 7 Ohio State (11-1, at-large)
No. 9 Missouri (10-2, at-large) at No. 8 Oregon (11-2, at-large)
Playoff games at Doak Campbell Stadium, Sanford Stadium, the Horseshoe, and Autzen Stadium? Sign me up!
It’s a good thing kids can get paid, because the season is now NFL-level lengthy
This type of schedule would have been a travesty prior to the student-athletes being allowed to receive money for commercials and endorsements. Now, there is the NIL money as some form of compensation, along with the court ruling last month that will allow schools to literally pay the players a share of the TV revenues. This is a good thing, given that the teams who make the finals could play as many as 17 games, the equivalent of an NFL regular season.
This playoff is an entrée on a buffet of American football that might choke us all!
This playoff format will add eight new, significant college football games to the holiday season, so get your shopping done early, because your family is about to think you were kidnapped come December 19. Check out this delicious menu of holiday football:
Thursday, 12/19: NFL Thursday Night Football
Friday, 12/20: 1st ever College Football Playoff game on a college campus
Saturday, 12/21: College Football Playoff triple header, NFL double header (including Texans vs Chiefs)
Sunday, 12/22: NFL Week 16 full slate
Monday, 12/23: NFL Monday Night Football
Tuesday, 12/24:
Wednesday, 12/25: NFL double header (including Ravens vs Texans)
Thursday, 12/26: NFL Thursday Night Football
Friday, 12/27:
Saturday, 12/28:
Sunday, 12/29: NFL Week 17 full slate
Monday, 12/30: NFL Monday Night Football
Tuesday, 12/31: 1st ever College Football Playoff quarterfinal game
Wednesday, 1/1: College Football Playoff quarterfinal triple header
Again, sign me up!
Listen to Sean Pendergast on SportsRadio 610 from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. weekdays. Also, follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/SeanTPendergast, on Instagram at instagram.com/sean.pendergast, and like him on Facebook at facebook.com/SeanTPendergast.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
