Around CFB: Eyes on the Top 5

Playoff Expansion

The biggest news heading into Week 1 came from the College Football Playoff Committee as the group announced that the playoff will soon expand to 12 teams. 

According to the release, the board approved the following:

• The 12 teams will be the six conference champions ranked highest by the selection committee (no minimum ranking requirement), plus the six highest-ranked teams not included among the six highest-ranked conference champions.
• The ranking of the teams will continue to be done by a selection committee whose size, composition, and method of selection will remain substantially unchanged. The Management Committee will modify the selection protocol as required by the change to the playoff structure.
• The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded one through four and each will receive a first-round bye.
• The other eight teams will play in the first round with the higher seeds hosting the lower seeds either on campus or at other sites designated by the higher-seeded institution (No. 12 at No. 5, No. 11 at No. 6, No. 10 at No. 7 and No. 9 at No. 8.)
• The model allows for first-round games to be played on either the second or third weekend in December in a way that best accommodates the format and the participating teams, with at least 12 days between the conference championship games and the first-round games. The Management Committee would make the final determination of the calendar. 
• Subject to reaching agreement with bowls, the four quarterfinal games and two Playoff Semifinal games would be played in bowls on a rotating basis.
• The national championship game will continue to be played at a neutral site.
• Subject to reaching agreement with bowls, the four highest-ranked conference champions will be assigned to quarterfinals bowls on selection day in ranking order, and in consideration of current contract bowl relationships if those bowls are selected for the rotation. For example, if the Pac-12 champion were ranked #1, the Big Ten champion were ranked #3, and the Rose Bowl were a quarterfinal site, the Pac-12 champion would be assigned to the Rose Bowl and the Big Ten champion would be assigned elsewhere.
• With the four highest-ranked champions assigned to quarterfinal games in bowls, the opponent from first-round game winners will be assigned by the selection committee based on the bracket.
• The higher seeds would receive preferential placement in the Playoff Semifinal games.
• First-round games will not have title or presenting sponsors and existing venue signage will remain in place. The CFP will control the video boards.

Huge changes for sure! Catch the full press conference right here: CFB Playoff Expansion

Painful Start in Blacksburg

The Brent Pry Era at Virginia Tech isn’t off to a great start after the Hokies lost last night against Old Dominion, 20-17. It was ODU’s second win against Virginia Tech in the past four seasons. The Hokies had five turnovers, leading to 17 Old Dominion points-- including a bad snap on a field goal attempt that lead to a Monarch touchdown.

The Hokies open ACC play next week against Boston College in what feels like an early ‘must-win’ for Pry’s bunch.

ACCtion

The ACC will be featured throughout the Labor Day Weekend with 12 games over a five-day span, Sept. 1-5. No other league plays across all five days in Week One. This is the fourth time in the last six years the ACC has played over five consecutive days in Week One.

The Labor Day weekend began on Thursday, Sept. 1, with both of last year’s ACC division champions in action. ACC and Coastal Division Champion Pitt downed West Virginia 38-31 in the “Backyard Brawl” and Atlantic Division champion Wake Forest posted a 44-10 victory over VMI in Winston-Salem. Additionally, last night, Duke shoutout Temple 30-0 to open Mike Elko’s tenure in Durham.

Saturday’s slate includes the first conference game of the year – Louisville at Syracuse (8 p.m./ACCN) – and a non-conference Power 5 matchup between Boston College vs. Rutgers (Noon/ACCN). Other games on Sept. 3 include North Carolina at Appalachian State (Noon/ESPNU), NC State at East Carolina (Noon/ESPN), Richmond at Virginia (12:30 p.m./RSN) and Bethune-Cookman at Miami (3:30 p.m./ACCN).

On Sunday, Sept. 4, Florida State travels to New Orleans to face LSU at the Caesars Superdome (7:30 p.m./ABC). The 2022 season opener is the first of two games between the teams over the next two seasons. In 2023, the teams will play in Orlando, Florida.

In the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game on Labor Day Monday, Georgia Tech hosts Clemson at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta (8 p.m./ESPN). The Tigers, who beat Iowa State in the Cheez-It Bowl, won 10 games for the 11th consecutive season in 2021.

Must Watch Weekend

Here are the two biggest games to watch Saturday afternoon:

No. 11 Oregon at No. 3 Georgia, 3:30 on ABC

Oregon Head Coach Dan Lanning served the last three years as Smart's co-defensive coordinator, helping lead the Dawgs to a National Championship. Now, he’s on the other sideline after replacing Mario Cristobal, who took over at Miami.

Can Lanning’s insight into the Georgia defense help Oregon pull off a huge win for the PAC-12?

No. 5 Notre Dame at No. 2 Ohio State, 7:30 on ABC

In the only Top 5 matchup this weekend, Notre Dame Head Coach Marcus Freeman returns to his alma mater during his debut with the Fighting Irish. As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes enter with one of the best offenses in America and will certainly hope to put a stamp on the opener. You may recall last season, a No. 3 ranked Ohio State team was stunned by Oregon in their second game of the 2021 season. Will Ryan Day’s squad have better luck tonight? Not if the Irish can help it.