Revised NCAA Football Playoff Plan Summary
The updated plan for the NCAA Division I FBS postseason replaces the current 47 bowl games with 45 playoff matches across three separate 16-team single-elimination tournaments, while eliminating conference championship games. Conference champions are determined exclusively by regular-season conference records and tiebreakers. The three tournaments are the Top Tier (National Championship Tournament for elite teams), Middle Tier (Elite Consolation Tournament for the next level), and Bottom Tier (Developmental Tournament for emerging teams), each requiring 15 games. A total of 48 teams are selected from the 136 FBS teams using a committee's rankings, with automatic bids added to the middle and lower tiers to enhance inclusivity, reward conference performance, and mirror the tiered prestige and payouts of the current bowl system (e.g., higher tiers offer greater revenue and exposure, similar to New Year's Six vs. lower bowls).
Selection Details:
Top Tier: 5 automatic bids (champions of the four major conferences: ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC; plus the highest-ranked Group of 5/6 champion) + 11 at-large bids based on rankings.
Middle Tier: 6 automatic bids (the remaining 5 Group of 5/6 conference champions from AAC, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West, Sun Belt, and Pac-12 if applicable; plus 1 for the highest-ranked independent or major conference runner-up not in the top tier) + 10 at-large bids from the next highest-ranked teams.
Bottom Tier: 8 automatic bids (sub-champions, runners-up, or division winners from all 10 FBS conferences, prioritizing teams with 7+ wins and ensuring every conference has representation if not already placed higher) + 8 at-large bids from the remaining highest-ranked teams in the 48-team pool.
Payouts and prestige are tiered: Top Tier offers the highest rewards (e.g., $5-10M per advance), Middle Tier moderate ($2-4M), and Bottom Tier developmental ($500K-1M), preserving bowl-like economics for host cities and sponsors. Seeding within each tier is based on overall rankings, with brackets designed for geographic and rivalry considerations.
This structure promotes equity for smaller conferences, reduces opt-outs by providing meaningful titles, and aligns with bowl traditions while increasing competitiveness.
The updated plan for the NCAA Division I FBS postseason replaces the current 47 bowl games with 45 playoff matches across three separate 16-team single-elimination tournaments, while eliminating conference championship games. Conference champions are determined exclusively by regular-season conference records and tiebreakers. The three tournaments are the Top Tier (National Championship Tournament for elite teams), Middle Tier (Elite Consolation Tournament for the next level), and Bottom Tier (Developmental Tournament for emerging teams), each requiring 15 games. A total of 48 teams are selected from the 136 FBS teams using a committee's rankings, with automatic bids added to the middle and lower tiers to enhance inclusivity, reward conference performance, and mirror the tiered prestige and payouts of the current bowl system (e.g., higher tiers offer greater revenue and exposure, similar to New Year's Six vs. lower bowls).
Selection Details:
Top Tier: 5 automatic bids (champions of the four major conferences: ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC; plus the highest-ranked Group of 5/6 champion) + 11 at-large bids based on rankings.
Middle Tier: 6 automatic bids (the remaining 5 Group of 5/6 conference champions from AAC, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West, Sun Belt, and Pac-12 if applicable; plus 1 for the highest-ranked independent or major conference runner-up not in the top tier) + 10 at-large bids from the next highest-ranked teams.
Bottom Tier: 8 automatic bids (sub-champions, runners-up, or division winners from all 10 FBS conferences, prioritizing teams with 7+ wins and ensuring every conference has representation if not already placed higher) + 8 at-large bids from the remaining highest-ranked teams in the 48-team pool.
Payouts and prestige are tiered: Top Tier offers the highest rewards (e.g., $5-10M per advance), Middle Tier moderate ($2-4M), and Bottom Tier developmental ($500K-1M), preserving bowl-like economics for host cities and sponsors. Seeding within each tier is based on overall rankings, with brackets designed for geographic and rivalry considerations.
This structure promotes equity for smaller conferences, reduces opt-outs by providing meaningful titles, and aligns with bowl traditions while increasing competitiveness.