Monday night’s game between Michigan and Washington will do more than just determine a national champion for the 2023 college football season.
It will mark the end of an era in the sport.
The matchup between the Wolverines and Huskies will be the final game of the four-team College Football Playoff format, a system that has been in place since the 2014 season, when it replaced the much-maligned Bowl Championship Series. Replacing it next season will be a 12-team playoff.
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The change will be a welcome one for many, providing more programs access to the sport’s biggest and brightest stage while giving fans more high-stakes games with significant national interest. Still, the switch will be something of a jolt for many who have grown accustomed to the four-team setup and how it operates, leaving many with questions about what awaits in this brave new world for college football.
Here’s everything you need to know about the 12-team College Football Playoff:
What teams will make the 12-team College Football Playoff?
The selection of the four teams for the current playoff format encountered few snags over the course of its existence, but as this season showed with Alabama’s much-debated nod over Florida State for the No. 4 seed, there were inherent flaws in the system. The setup was meant to reward conference champions, but when there are only four available spots and five major conferences, it leaves open the inevitability a team with a deserving resume will get excluded.
While it almost certainly will still be subject to criticism, the 12-team model includes more teams and should theoretically have fewer glaring omissions.
So who will make up the field?
As things currently stand, six automatic berths will be…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/college-football-playoff-12-team-113111368.html
Author : Detroit Free Press
Publish date : 2024-01-08 11:31:11
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