The College Football Playoff and ESPN agreed to extend the deadline for determining format changes in future postseasons. What does this mean for college football?
College Football Playoff Deadline Extended
OFFICIAL RELEASE: The College Football Playoff and ESPN have mutually agreed to extend the deadline for finalizing the future postseason format and related structural decisions from December 1, 2025 to January 23, 2026.
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— College Football Playoff (@CFBPlayoff) November 24, 2025
Changes might be coming to the 2026 playoff and beyond. However, those changes will not be finalized for at least two more months.
The CFP and ESPN mutually agreed to move the deadline for structure changes from December 1, 2025, to January 23, 2026.
“We appreciate the continued partnership and collaboration with ESPN as we work through the important elements that will shape the future of the College Football Playoff,” said Executive Director of the CFP Rich Clark. “While no change to the current format is definite, this extension will allow the Management Committee additional time to evaluate the second year of the expanded playoff and ensure any potential modifications are carefully considered, fully vetted, and in the best interests of student-athletes, schools, and fans.”
The biggest topic for debate is the number of teams in the CFP. Currently, the College Football Playoff consists of 12 teams — five highest-ranked conference champions and seven at-large teams.
Expansion is on the table. A 14-team format and a 16-team format have been the most popular suggestions. However, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti wants to implement a 24-team playoff with automatic qualifiers for every conference.
The 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua must vote on the proposal.
The two commissioners with the most power are Petitti and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey. Petitti wants a larger playoff with potentially four automatic qualifiers for each of the Power 4 conferences.
On the other hand, Sankey prefers a 14- or 16-team playoff, with the 5+11 strategy as his preferred format. In this proposal, the five highest-ranked conference champions receive automatic bids to the playoff. Then, 11 teams receive at-large bids based on their ranking from the committee.
If the commissioners can’t come to a consensus, then the 12-team playoff will return in 2026.
2025 College Football Playoff Rankings
November 1️⃣8️⃣ College Football Playoff Selection Committee Rankings#CFBPlayoff 🏈🏆 pic.twitter.com/6VWsejrKQr
— College Football Playoff (@CFBPlayoff) November 19, 2025
In the third CFP rankings of the 2025 season, Ohio State remained as the No. 1 team in the country.
With the latest rankings, the four teams that would receive byes are No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Indiana, No. 3 Texas A&M, and No. 4 Georgia.
The four teams that would host quarterfinal matchups are No. 5 Texas Tech, No. 6 Ole Miss, No. 7 Oregon, and No. 8 Oklahoma.
The final four teams in the field would be No. 9 Notre Dame, No. 10 Alabama, No. 13 Miami, and No. 24 Tulane. Remember, the five highest-ranked conference champions receive automatic berths. Miami is the highest-ranked ACC team, and Tulane is the highest-ranked Group of Five.
The next College Football Playoff Rankings will be on Nov. 25.
