The ACC got two schools into the first year of the extended College Football Playoff…barely. There were debates about whether the Power 4 conference deserved two or should just have the conference champion in and leave it at one. That has caused the conference offices to reconsider how to shove more teams into the playoff by altering its own post-season play.
Clemson and SMU both made their way to the new 12-team playoff this season. It was a bit of a circuitous route that caused some debate. With no divisions in the conference, the top two teams qualify for the conference championship game. Miami and SMU were the front runners going into the last weekend of the regular season. Then Miami lost at Syracuse. As a result, Clemson, fresh off a loss to South Carolina that same day found itself in the conference championship game against SMU.
Could the ACC Try To Shove More of Its Teams Into Playoffs?
2024 Finish Raises Concerns
However, the outcome of the championship game cast a lot of doubt on how many teams the ACC would get into the playoff. That has caused Commissioner Dr. Jim Phillips to consider adding another layer to the conference championship format. The effort is intended to shoehorn another team into the College Football Playoff.
Clemson went into the ACC championship game at 7-1 in conference play, but 9-3 overall. The three losses made the conference championship game a must-win for the Tigers. A fourth loss was certain to keep them out of the playoff.
SMU seemed easier. The Mustangs were 8-0 in their first-ever ACC season and 11-1 overall. The only loss was by three points two months earlier to BYU.
But then Clemson beat SMU by three points in the closing seconds in Charlotte and the seemingly obvious no longer was.
Clemson would get into the playoff by virtue of being the conference champion. SMU should have been a given. A record with only two losses by a grand total of six points was thought to be good enough. But the next 15 hours had more than the anticipated debate. The ACC does not have the national clout or cache of the SEC. Could the committee find a way to get a three-loss Alabama or three-loss Ole Miss team in ahead of SMU?
Obviously, at this point, we know that both Clemson and SMU got in. Social media “warriors” like Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin dogged the decision for weeks. And then both schools got knocked out with relative ease in the first round, SMU by Penn State and Clemson by Texas.
ACC Options?
But Phillips is clearly concerned that with a profile far below the Big 10 and the SEC, ACC runners-up could be on the outside looking in down the road.
Over the last week, while in Atlanta for the festivities surrounding the national championship game, Phillips said there are a couple of revisions under consideration. The most prominent one would allow the regular season first place to be deemed the conference champion.
The idea that will be put in front of the conference athletic directors is to change the ACC Championship Game into a play-in game for the CFP with a matchup between the Nos. 2 and 3 teams in the conference standings. The regular-season champion would remain idle on conference championship week and be rewarded with an automatic bid into the playoff.
The Big Picture
In order for it to work, the playoff committee would have to agree to a 3-3-2-2-1 selection format. The SEC and Big 10 would be guaranteed three teams each. The ACC and Big 12 would get two teams per conference, and the Group of Five would get one team. The numbers would be locked in, regardless of the quality of teams or records. Remaining bids would be given to at-large teams depending upon a 12, 14, or 16-team playoff format.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart had thoughts about having to play in a conference championship game. It came at a time when he said his team needed rest more than anything. And he made those thoughts public at the ceremony giving his team the SEC championship trophy in front of conference commissioner Greg Sankey.
Phillips said last week that he thinks the value of conference championships is lessened by the expanded playoffs. But he acknowledged that with the monetary value of conference championships, it is unlikely they will be eliminated any time soon.
The commissioner intends to put his thoughts on options for the conference in front of football coaches and athletic directors this week, with a more analytical dive coming at the conference winter meetings in February.
The post Could the ACC Try To Shove More of Its Teams Into Playoffs? appeared first on Last Word on College Football.