College Football Playoff changes system to reward top seeds
The College Football Playoff system is adapting. After a year that saw first-round and quarterfinal games turn into mismatches because weaker conference champions were awarded byes, the CFP will award the four top seeds a pass into the next round.
This makes sense because Boise State, which was seeded ninth, and Arizona State, which was 12th, were given byes in the system after the 2024 season. Every first-round game saw the higher seed win by double digits.
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Then, when Boise State and Arizona State entered the mix in the quarterfinal round, they were defeated by Penn State and Texas, respectively. The Sun Devils' eight-point, double overtime loss to Texas was the lone game in the first two rounds that finished with a difference of fewer than double-digit points.
The five highest-ranked conference champions are still guaranteed bids. In the case of Notre Dame, an independent that plays a schedule dotted with ACC teams, if the Fighting Irish are in the top four they would be eligible for a bye.
The audible to change the setup of the system came when the 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua reached a unanimous decision.
This article originally appeared on Touchdown Wire: College Football Playoff moves to straight seeding for 2025 season
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