College Football Playoff expansion: 10 complications fans must prepare for, from seeding to NFL interference

The expanded College Football Playoff will debut following the 2024 season, radically transforming the future of the sport. When the four-team CFP debuted following the 2014 season, it fielded 3% of the Football Bowl Subdivision. This year, that number balloons to 9%. 

More teams inevitably means more complications. Some of the biggest questions are purely logistical. Others will center on teaching viewers about the system. Following the biggest controversy of the CFP era, getting fans to understand the process is an existential task. 

A quick refresher on the new system: 12 teams will make the expanded CFP — five conference champs and seven at-large teams. The four highest-ranked conference champions are guaranteed the top four seeds with byes, and the remaining eight teams are seeded in order. Seeds 5-8 will host seeds 9-12 in first-round games on campus, with the winners heading to quarterfinals against the top four seeds at New Year’s Six bowl sites. From there, it’s a tournament. 

“The four first-round games are arguably the biggest change in FBS football probably since the BCS came to be,” CFP executive director Bill Hancock said in April. “Only four schools will host those games, but 40 or so have to plan to host, so there’s a lot of details there.” 

Some pieces of the process remain the same. The CFP field will still be decided by a 13-member committee using the same criteria. Despite the vitriol directed at the board after undefeated Florida State was left out in favor of Alabama this past season, CFP polling claims a 79% approval rating for the board. 

With a brand new system and dramatically increased access, plenty of fans will be shocked when the actual machinations of the playoff debut this winter. Here are 10 things fans need to prepare for heading into the new system. 

1. Differentiating ranking from seeding

Picture this: the College Football Playoff releases its final rankings. Georgia, Michigan, TCU and Ohio State easily round out the top four, just like they did during the 2022 season. The bracket appears on the broadcast and sitting in the third spot … is No. 7 Clemson? 

Welcome to the new world of seeding. 

The CFP management committee recently went through a bracketing exercise during their annual meetings in Dallas and modeled the 2022 field as a placeholder. Immediately, the confusion became clear. The four teams that would have…