The American Football Coaches Association's Board of Trustees is expected to support a broader playoff model that would include as many as 24 teams and eliminate conference championship games.
The AFCA's stance is that future models should "maximize the number of participants" while still finishing by their proposed deadline. The 24-team model is the most-discussed version.
How the 24-team playoff would work
- 24 teams, selected through the CFP rankings, with a guaranteed spot for the best team from the Group of Six.
- Seeds 1-8 would get byes. Seeds 9-24 would play first-round games on campus sites.
- The winners would advance to face the top eight seeds in a round of 16.
- Conference championship games would go away.
- The first playoff round would likely take over that first December weekend after the regular season and the CFP would finish by the second Monday in January
AFCA supports CFP model that will "maximize the number of participants"
The current 12-team playoff remains in place for the 2026-27 season. First-round games are scheduled for Dec. 18-19, quarterfinals are set for Dec. 30-Jan. 1, semifinals are scheduled for Jan. 14-15, and the national championship game will be played Jan. 25, 2027. That is the fourth Monday in January, which is later than many coaches want.
The AFCA's proposal is to end the playoff by the second Monday in January. To do that, the group also supports reducing scheduled bye weeks from two to one, allowing a minimum of six days between games and protecting a dedicated Army-Navy window while allowing other games that day outside the window.
The biggest winners would be teams ranked from about No. 13 to No. 24. In the current 12-team format, those teams are mostly out. In a 24-team field, they are alive and likely playing meaningful December football.
The SEC and Big Ten could regularly place a large number of teams in the field. The ACC and Big 12 would also get more access than they do in a 12-team format, especially in years where their second-, third- or fourth-best teams are good but not top-12 picks.
For a program like Miami, this cuts both ways. If the Hurricanes are elite, the goal would still be a top-eight seed and a bye. If they are a 9-3 team with quality wins, the expanded field would give them a chance.
If the CFP rankings decide the whole bracket, the committee becomes even more powerful. Strength of schedule, conference depth, injuries, head-to-head results and the eye test would matter more than ever. Miami and Mario Cristobal must be ready for that possibility.
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