CFP doesn't rule out 'tweaks' to format for 2025

ATLANTA -- No major decisions were made regarding the future format of the 12-team College Football Playoff on Sunday, but "tweaks" to the 2025 season haven't been ruled out, CFP executive director Rich Clark said.

Sunday's annual meeting of the FBS commissioners and the presidents and chancellors who control the playoff wasn't expected to produce any immediate course of action, but it was the first time that people with the power to change the playoff met in person to begin a review of the historic expanded bracket.

Clark said the group talked about "a lot of really important issues," but the meeting at the Signia by Hilton set the stage for bigger decisions that need to be made "very soon."

Commissioners would have to unanimously agree upon any changes to the 12-team format to implement them for the 2025 season.

"I would say it's possible, but I don't know if it's going to happen or not," Clark said on the eve of the College Football Playoff National Championship game between Ohio State and Notre Dame. "There's probably some things that could happen in short order that might be tweaks to the 2025 season, but we haven't determined that yet."

A source with knowledge of the conversations said nobody at this time was pushing hard for a 14-team bracket, and there wasn't an in-depth discussion of the seeding process, but talks were held about the value of having the four highest-ranked conference champions earn first-round byes.

Ultimately, the 11 presidents and chancellors who comprise the CFP's board of managers will vote on any changes, and some university leaders said they liked rewarding those conference champions with byes because of the emphasis it placed on conference title games.

Mississippi State president Mark Keenum, the chair of the board of managers, said they didn't talk about "what-ifs," but they have tasked the commissioners to produce a plan for future governance and the format for 2026 and beyond.

Starting in 2026, any changes will no longer require unanimous approval, and the Big Ten and the SEC will have the bulk of control over the format -- a power that was granted during the past CFP contract negotiation. The commissioners will again meet in person at their annual April meeting in Las Colinas, Texas, and the presidents and chancellors will have a videoconference or phone call on May 6.

"We're extremely happy with where we are now," Keenum said. "We're looking towards the new contract, which is already in place with ESPN, our media provider, for the next six years through 2032. We've got to make that transition from the current structure that we're in to the new structure we'll have."

Following Sunday's meeting, sources continued to express skepticism that there will be unanimous agreement to make any significant changes for the 2025 season, but a more thorough review will continue in the following months.

"The commissioners and our athletic director from Notre Dame will look at everything across the board," Clark said. "We're going to tee them up so that they could really have a thorough look at the playoff looking back after this championship game is done ... and then look back and figure out what is it that we need."