The College Football Playoff logo is displayed on the field at AT&T Stadium before the Rose Bowl. Next season, the playoffs will be expanded from four to twelve teams.
The field for the 12-team College Football Playoff, which begins next season, will include five conference champions and seven at-large picks, after the CFP’s university presidents unanimously opted to change the system Tuesday.
The decision to reduce the number of berths allotted for conference champions from six to five was motivated by realignment and the dismantling of the Pacific-12. A vote scheduled for last month was postponed at the request of the Pac-12.
The 12-team system was originally intended to include the six highest-ranked conference champions, with the top four receiving first-round byes and the remaining six at-large selections. However, with one fewer so-called major conferences following the Pac-12’s dissolution, the CFP commissioners advocated changing the structure from 6-6 to 5-7.
No conference will have automatic access. These five spots will be awarded to the highest-ranked conference champions as judged by the CFP selection committee, ensuring that at least one team from outside the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten, Big 12, and Southeastern Conference will make the 12-team field.
The selection committee’s ranking will also determine the seven at-large bids. There will be no limit on how many teams can come from the same league.
“It basically confirms the spirit of the original 6-6, and that was done when you had five A5 conferences,” American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco said on Tuesday. ”Having a fifth (champion) is a fantastic thing, and it’s not a four-plus-one. It’s the top five… “It is a merit-based system.”
The upcoming season will be the first with a 12-team playoff, following ten years of a four-team event.
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