Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
By Chris Marler
The College Football Playoff has had a quiet offseason. Outside of a marketing decision to rebrand their logo and rumors of expansion that never came to fruition, it’s been silent.
That is until last week when, thanks to Greg Sankey, we learned that the top two seeds in the 12 team playoff will be allowed to choose their path in the postseason as far as which cities and bowls they want to play in leading up to the eventual national championship. That’s a good rule change. Rewarding the top ranked teams should be a priority.
Greg Sankey mentions here an interesting adjustment that CFP leaders made for this year where the 1 seed in the playoff has its choice of both its quarterfinal and semifinal bowl locations, followed by the 2 seed having its choice of its path as well. https://t.co/fehwc9WaXx
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) April 29, 2026
Changing venues likely would not have mattered last season. Indiana was the No. 1 seed and played in the Rose Bowl and Peach Bowl before winning the national title in Miami. The biggest hub for Indiana alumni outside of Indianapolis is Atlanta, so that probably would have been the route they chose.
Decision makers have not always had their finger on the pulse of the sport. Very few decisions seem to be based on wants, needs or anything other than financial gain. So, let me help them out and tell you one immediate change they should make for the betterment of everyone.
Create two playoffs. One for Power Four teams and another for the Group of Six.
We don’t need a 12 team playoff as is. We don’t need a 12 team playoff where we send an overmatched G6 school on the road to get beat by 30 on a college campus.
Yes, that 2007 Boise State-Oklahoma game in the Fiesta Bowl was awesome. Yes, we all enjoyed watching Tulane upset Caleb Williams and USC a few years ago. That doesn’t happen every year though, and the novelty of those upsets has worn off over the years. Thanks to high profile players sitting out bowl games, the transfer portal, and the de-emphasizing of the importance of non-CFP bowl games, these moments don’t matter as much. The upsets also don’t happen as much.
NEW: College Football Playoff First-Round Point Spreads via @BetMGM💰
Alabama (-2.5) at Oklahoma
Miami at Texas A&M (-3.5)
Tulane at Ole Miss (-16.5)
JMU at Oregon (-21.5) https://t.co/CBUTUPs2Po https://t.co/fS0WlVmq3J pic.twitter.com/VPg6uUsRhY— On3 (@On3) December 7, 2025
What that has essentially done is cut the Division I level of this sport in half. The disparity of resources and relevance between Power Four football and Group of Six football is staggering.
That doesn’t stop fans from watching either product though. People aren’t watching less college football. Viewership overall was up four percent from the previous season. The SEC had the highest viewership of any Power Four conference. ABC to their third highest ranked season ever and a 19 percent increase from the previous season. The Big Ten saw an increase of 11 percent on Fox from 2024. Even the ACC games on the CW were up 26 percent.
People still love college football despite the drastic changes over the last five years. What people don’t love is watching blowouts and bad football. That’s what G6 versus Power Four football games are.
Everything in the sport today revolves around television money and contracts. You’re telling me people wouldn’t tune in to see a Power Four, Group of Six and FCS Playoff every December and January. I can’t be the only one that would rather watch James Madison and Tulane face each other instead of watching them charter a cross country flight just to get their brains beat in by a $25-30 million roster like Oregon and Ole Miss.
The fix is simple. Do it. It’s not rocket science.
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