Another college football regular season has concluded; however, this year, things are a bit different. 2024 is the inaugural year of the 12-team playoff, which was supposed to end most playoff controversy. However, controversy has already begun, and it seems another shift in college football is coming. This year the NCAA saved conference championship games with the selections by the College Football Playoff (CFP) Committee, however, it is only a matter of time before these games do more harm than good. Furthermore, with a focus on wins, non-conference schedules will get much weaker.

Controversies Arise in the New CFP Format

The new college football playoff format automatically advances the five highest-ranked conference champions and the seven next highest-ranked teams. Furthermore, the four highest-ranked conference champions receive a first-round bye. However, this has created arguments about the value of conference championship games.

Conference championship games used to be valuable points to help college football programs pivot into better bowl games and build their brands. However, conference championship games could potentially be becoming more of a risk than an opportunity for teams. In November, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin said that many teams in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) did not want to play in the conference championship game.

An example of this controversy came after the ACC championship game.

The ACC championship took place between Clemson and Southern Methodist University (SMU) and Alabama sat just outside the playoffs on a bye. SMU was ranked No. 8 with one loss and Clemson was ranked No. 17. Clemson won with a game-ending Field Goal, guaranteeing their spot in the playoffs.

However, where did this put SMU?

With SMU losing, many people thought this would bump them out of the playoff and Alabama would be in. SMU has a much smaller brand and technically has a much weaker schedule. Alabama, however, has one of, if not the biggest brands in football, however, had losses to Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Oklahoma. The latter two finished with 6-6 records. Based on this, SMU should have been the obvious answer to who should get the last at-large bid for the playoffs, however, the fact that this was up for debate opens a door to a glaring issue in college football.

The Value of Conference Championship Games is Dropping

In 2023, there was much controversy based on the decision to omit Florida State from the playoff. That team won the ACC and went undefeated, however, they were ultimately placed outside of the playoff due to the injury of Jordan Travis.

With the Florida State situation in mind, what would the committee have done if SMU was ranked No. 11 heading into the ACC championship? If they bumped SMU from the playoff then teams will no longer play in conference championship games and instead take the at-large spot.

The Relevance of Strength of Schedule

Another concern for the new CFP format is the Strength of Schedule (SOS). Does it matter? SMU had a weak schedule all season, especially compared to other playoff teams. With this in mind, what do quality wins mean to the committee?

Even former Alabama head coach, Nick Saban has commented on it. He believes teams will craft easier non-conference schedules, especially when they already have a rigorous conference schedule. However, overall he does agree with the new format.

Similar to the SMU situation, schools will most likely transition to easier non-conference schedules. For teams in the Power 4, conference matchups will be the place for quality wins in the future.

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