SEC commissioner Greg Sankey «absolutely» wants changes to the College Football Playoff format in 2025, according to The Athletic’s Seth Emerson. Sankey argues the 12-team playoff was initially contrived prior to mass conference realignment and expansion and now, the seeding process is out of whack. As it stands, five auto-bids are given to Power 4 conference champions and the victor from the Group of Five along with seven at-large selections. The top-4 seeds all must be conference champions and they get first-round byes.
«Remember when the format was introduced we had what was called the Power 5 and the Group of 5,» Sankey said. «There is not a Power 5. We had looked at history, you never meant pulling seeds from outside the (top) 10 really into the top four in this format. And that’s now happened.
Those are learning experiences, and that informs adaptation. And we’ve got a responsibility to have what I would consider is a competitive and fair format.»
Texas is the SEC’s lone representative in the final four following Georgia’s 23-10 loss to Notre Dame’s in Thursday’s Sugar Bowl quarterfinal. The SEC placed three teams in the expanded playoff, but Tennessee’s first-round blowout loss to Ohio State was an eye-opener and the Longhorns needed a fourth-down conversion in overtime to stay alive in Wednesday’s win over Arizona State.
Earlier this season, Sankey stoked the playoff selection debate citing the SEC’s strength of schedule. In November, Sankey took to social media sharing a chart that highlighted the College Football Playoff ranking of the top-15 teams with the highest average strength of schedules this season. Unsurprisingly, the SEC claimed the top six spots, prompting Sankey to draw attention to the glaring trend.
The current format is set for the 2025 season contractually, but that can change if all 10 conference along with Notre Dame unanimously vote to change. Further expansion could happen as soon as 2026, but for now, 12 teams is where it will stay.
Among reported discussions, changes in 2025 may include a varied seeding arrangement. Auto-qualifiers would not change, but the seeding process would.
Executive playoff director Richard Clark fielded questions on the future of the postseason and a potential move to more entries in the near future over the summer. For now, the revenue distribution plan for the expanded playoff is settled through the 2026 season.
«I would not make that assumption, but what we know is that we’re going to make this 12-team as spectacular as we absolutely can,» Clark said.» And then, in good military fashion after the operation is done, then we’re going to hot wash and look back to see what worked and what didn’t, especially in the early days. It’s important for us to be open-minded and ask ourselves how we can make it better. There’s a lot of talk about potentials and what could be good, but we need to see how the 12-team playoff goes and make that assessment afterward.»
Former College Football Playoff executive director Bill Hancock told 247Sports last year said he doesn’t sense «urgency» among leadership on a decision for the playoff’s format in 2026 despite reports of momentum building for a 14-team format.