Sources: SEC, Big Ten would hold rights to first-round byes in new proposed CFP format

What the College Football Playoff would’ve looked like last season in a 14-team format. (Taylar Sievert/Yahoo Sports)

INDIANAPOLIS — A day after news emerged of a proposed new model to an expanded College Football Playoff, many questions linger, perhaps none more important than the seeding and bye structure of the 14-team field.

Champions of the SEC and Big Ten would hold exclusive rights on the two first-round byes, according to one version circulated to several college athletic administrators. The version has not been finalized and is only being socialized before more exploratory work on the format, those with knowledge of the model told Yahoo Sports.

Such a concept — guaranteed byes for the Big Ten and SEC — is an unusual but somewhat expected maneuver from college football’s goliaths. It’s also a move that has garnered pushback from administrators outside of those two conferences.

In a 14-team model that officials are socializing with their leagues, the Big Ten and SEC would each receive three automatic qualifiers, with the ACC and Big 12 getting two each and the Group of Five’s best team qualifying as well. Such a model would feature three at-large spots to the highest-ranked teams outside of the automatic qualifiers.

The model calls for the top two seeds to have byes into the second round. Under the 12-team format that will be used this fall and in 2025, the four highest-ranked conference champions are granted byes. In the 14-team version circulating across the country, the ACC and Big 12, the other two major conferences, would not have access to obtaining a bye — an unprecedented move and perhaps a tipping point for some administrators in those leagues.

The seeding and pairings of a 14-team bracket is expected to operate in a similar way to the current structure, where the CFP Selection Committee’s…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/sources-sec-big-ten-would-hold-rights-to-first-round-byes-in-new-proposed-cfp-format-224109166.html

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Publish date : 2024-02-29 22:41:09

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