Sankey’s not budging on an eight-team playoff format, but it sounds like he’s agreed to throw the Alliance a bone: the “5+1”.
The debate over eight appears over. Now, there’s a new model, as college football leaders are not done haggling over playoff expansion formats just yet.
At their meeting last week, a group of conference commissioners introduced a new alternate 12-team postseason model that guarantees a berth to each Power 5 champion, sources tell Sports Illustrated.
The model is almost identical to the one a subcommittee introduced over the summer—aside from one change. The alternate model grants automatic bids to the Power 5 champions plus the highest-ranked Group of 5 champion. The subcommittee’s proposal gives automatic access to the six highest-ranked conference champions. Each format completes the field with six at-large selections based on rankings.
That just reeks of the best of the best, doesn’t it?
They know what the weak sister P5s are. They’re just haggling over the fee. Which is all the CFP is about, anyway.
Get The Picture 
Its Delusionary December! Where so-called “champions” show up with dreams of grandeur only to go home with a t-shirt and nightmares of their systematic, almost clinical, emasculation.
Let’s get ready to CRUMBLE!!
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The dirty secret is that most years the BCS could still credibly do the job. Even in this year of parity, there will not be five teams with a legitimate and unassailable argument for the right to play for a national championship. Not unless we are going to decide that the regular season isn’t supposed to matter. Since I’ve been alive, there have CERTAINLY never been 12 teams with a legitimate claim on a national title. Never. Four teams is enough. 12 teams will completely devalue what made the sport special in the first place. What a joke.
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Agreed. There’s never been a time in the history of the sport when 8 teams deserved to compete for an NC at the end of the year, let alone 12.
I wonder if this means fewer teams will schedule P5 non-conference games? It seems like there’s been a rush to schedule such games to “beef up” strength of schedule for a 4-team CFP slot…..
But with 12 teams and an “automatic” berth for P5 conference champions…. why bother?
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You’re right, for sure. If there are 12 playoff slots and your conference champ gets an automatic berth then you’re a chump if you go out and play Oregon to open the season. There’s literally no benefit for you. So get ready to see a lot more Charleston Southern football.
If they go to 12, then you’re going to hear some bitching from whoever is coaching Mississippi State that they were 13th and got left out. I’ll never forget the two years in a row that Seth Greenberg was bitching that Virginia Tech got left out of the NCAA field of 64 when he was ostensibly 65th – buddy, you were literally in, all you had to do was win four games in the ACC Tournament and they can’t keep you out! And you want to talk to me about being “deserving”? There really aren’t even four teams who “deserve” it this year. But whatever teams are on the margin whether it’s between 4/5 or 12/13 or 16/17, someone is always going to have a “case”. Ignore them.
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I guarantee you the Big XII is all in on this (likely the ACC and Pac 12 as well) because it keeps them in the Power 5 for football. Notre Dame won’t care because this protects their access without having to join a Power 5 conference. The Group of 5 will have the same access as before.
The question is whether Kevin Warren’s hurt fee-fees will allow the B1G to go along.
I’m still not a fan of wild cards due to the impact on the regular season, but this is going to happen.
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The (5+1)+6 model proposed would be interesting, to say the least. The number of teams that could play in a game they have no business playing could be astounding. Take 2019 for example because if I remember correctly that would be the only season since CFP inception that Bama wouldn’t make a twelve team playoff (based on conference champions, six at large and final CFP rankings):
LSU – SEC CC
Ohio State – B1G CC
Clemson – ACC CC
Oklahoma – Big XII CC
Oregon – Pac 12 CC
Memphis – AAC CC
Plus:
Georgia
Baylor
Wisconsin
Florida
Penn State
Utah
I assume that the top four seeds will get a bye in the first round. If the first round then is based on seeding you get the highly compelling matchup of Georgia/Memphis, a rematch of that year’s Pac 12 championship game with Oregon/Utah, etc. I won’t go far as to say that there wouldn’t ever be compelling first round matchups or that it wouldn’t lead to occasional upsets in the second round of one of the top four teams, but I just don’t believe that ultimately it
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Right….the only subtle change in format was a nod to 2020 and the credible theory that 2 G5 champions (Cincy and Coastal Carolina) would have supplanted one of the weak link P5 conferences.
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I think this format actually allows Oregon in over CCU because each Power 5 conference champion gets an automatic bid. The original proposal of the 6 highest rated conference champions would have put Coastal in over Oregon.
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That’s what I was saying…….they looked at 2020 data and said “Hold up”…..top 6 won’t work for us. We must have Power 5 plus 1.
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Got it – makes sense, but I think $ankey has never been about automatic bids. He wanted the best 12 according to the rankings because he knew his conference champion would always be in the top 12. He has offered this solution as a way to break the alliance. If he can make the B1G come to him on this, he becomes the de facto commissioner of college football.
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It’s bullshit
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My Dawg!
Brevity is the soul of eloquence.
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It is important to add just a little class at the end tho:
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They should go ahead a call it “The Notre Dame and 11 Others Tournament”.
What a stink bomb.
And teams getting byes is going to always cause a controversy..as in “UNFAIR, UNFAIR!!!”.
Everyone should just swear to boycott the televised first round or two. Of course the fans of those teams won’t but every one else could.
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This all reminds me of when the Dawgs curb-stomped Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl. I enjoyed that immensely. So much, in fact, that I say we move to 12 teams, automatic bids for the 5 P5 AND 5 G5 champs, plus 2 at large. Make this G5 teams all play P5 teams in the first round. You want it….prove it.
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I’m against expanding the playoffs on principle. However, I do like watching the Dawgs play. Watching them beat the living shit out of pretenders is especially enjoyable. I’d hate to see any Dawg get injured in an unnecessary contest however.
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I’m not crazy about playoff expansion but if they do it 8 is the right number not 12. With 8 you get all of the P5 champions in, the best G5 champion plus 2 best at large (I’m assuming that could include another G5 team if one is the next best) and no byes. Byes are unfair and lengthen the season. Also, having 12 devalues the season. 8 gets minimum 2, likely3 and maybe 4 SEC teams in every year. So Sankey is against the best option, eh? Maybe we should get rid of Sankey?
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How do you get to 4 SEC teams in your 8 team scenario?
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Vandy wins the AAC championship?
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I’d be down with a 6 team playoff with 6 conf champs where they flex schedule conf champ games only when they’re necessary. Top 2 based on rankings get 1st round byes and those games are played on campus. Then you keep the semifinal structure the same.
You’d still get 3 way ties and respect arguments every year so ppl can continue to complain. Win Win Win
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No way the Group of 5 or ND would go along. Without ND, ESPN never agrees.
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I agree with most everything said above, but I do have a little place in my heart for a local G5 team. All they ever really want is the CHANCE to take a swing at the BigBoys………and I personally think that would have more long term value OUTSIDE of the playoff. I certainly don’t think in the vast majority of these cases that any of them deserve a shot at a natty with a shitty schedule.
I would support seeing big Power 5 programs throwing top Group of 5 teams more scheduling bones in the regular season. Maybe even go to their home stadium every once in a while. I think it would be good for the long term health of the game…..are we really going to quibble and say that we’re perfectly fine going to ACC Johnny Come Lately Louisville (2026) but going to Cincinnati would be completely beneath us ? Go play and enjoy it. Flood their stadium and beat the shit out of them. Make em do a 2 for 1 if you must.
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25 or 6 2 4.
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Glad to see I’m not the only one that got this in their head with this title.
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Gotdam hippies.
😉
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Happy Vets day Russ, Spur,Ghurka, and all the other vets here.
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Second that and same to you, 84.
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Thank you, sir and I hope you had a good Veterans Day also, I84. Good times ahead.
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SIR!!!!!!
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This is simply put;
College Football Socialism.
For the collective good ya know.
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So…..back to censoring me I see.
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LOL
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