The College Football Playoffs (CFP) expanded from four teams to twelve teams this offseason, a change that has some college football fans excited, but also some are disappointed. Some fans are worried that the expansion to twelve teams has diminished the importance of regular season games, thinking that there isn’t as much at stake for a team if they lose one or two games. This worry and concern has been proven incorrect this season. The regular season games in college football this year have been just as exciting as in previous years. The argument could be made that the games are more thrilling. Here’s why.
The College Football Playoff has been around since 2014 under a four team format. This four team format was controversial in some cases where some teams believed they should’ve made it in over another. The expansion to twelve teams was designed to address criticism with the four team format, like when Florida State was undefeated, won the ACC championship game, but didn’t make the playoffs because their quarterback, Jordan Travis got injured in one of the final games of the season. Florida State fans were outraged because of this, believing that they weren’t given a fair chance. Because of this criticism and outrage, the CFP Board of Managers voted to expand the playoffs to twelve teams.
Some college football fans aren’t happy with the expansion. They believe that it makes regular season games less meaningful since more teams have the opportunity to qualify for the playoffs. While it is true that more teams have an opportunity to qualify, the games are still as meaningful and intense as they were before the expansion.
This is shown with recent TV ratings. The Alabama-Georgia game brought in 11.98 million viewers which would have been the second most viewed game in college football last season behind the great rivalry of Ohio State-Michigan which drew in 19.07 million viewers. If the games are so meaningless, why are people still tuning in? Because college football is special, even if you might think the game isn’t as intense as it was before, Alabama and Georgia fans still think it’s intense. The game also had big playoff implications. Georgia’s loss put them in a hole they have since been trying to dig themselves out of to get their spot in the CFP.
The expanded CFP format also means that more teams will be able to be in the hunt for a playoff spot, which causes for more darkhouses, more intensity, and better regular season games. An example of a darkhouse this year would be SMU. This is SMU’s first year in a Power 4 conference and they are atop of the ACC throughout the first twelve weeks of the season. Every single one of their games has been meaningful and impactful to them and their fanbase. Their regular season matchups have never been more important and they get more of a chance because of the expanded playoff format.
The expansion of the CFP hasn’t taken anything away from the regular season, as a matter of fact I believe that it has enhanced it causing for more drama and intensity which is what makes college football great.
