Category Archives: College Football News

Changes & Updates coming to the 2025-2026 College Football Playoff & Bowl Season

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The College Football Playoff will continue with its 12-team format, designed to offer a more inclusive and exciting postseason. After Ohio State won the initial CFP, the Buckeyes will look to defend their title in the 2025-2026 College Bowl Season’s CFP.

Key Features of the Format:

  • Team Selection: The 12-team field consists of the six highest-ranked conference champions and the six highest-ranked teams not among those champions. ​

  • Seeding and Byes: The four highest-ranked conference champions are seeded 1 through 4 and receive first-round byes. ​

  • First-Round Games: Seeds 5 through 12 compete in first-round games hosted at the higher seed’s home field or another site chosen by the higher seed.

  • Quarterfinals and Semifinals: These rounds are played at rotating bowl sites. ​

  • Championship Game: The national championship continues to be held at a neutral site. ​

2025–2026 CFP Schedule:

  • First Round: December 19–20, 2025​

  • Quarterfinals:

    • December 31, 2025: Cotton Bowl

    • January 1, 2026: Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl​

  • Semifinals:

  • National Championship: January 19, 2026, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida ​

Bowl Game Adjustments

The expansion of the CFP has led to adjustments in the traditional bowl game schedule and locations:​

  • Quarterfinal Hosts: The Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl, and Sugar Bowl will host the quarterfinal games for the 2025–2026 season. ​

  • Semifinal Hosts: The Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl are designated as the semifinal venues. ​

These changes integrate the historic New Year’s Six bowls into the playoff structure, enhancing their significance in determining the national champion.​

Media Rights and Financial Implications

ESPN has secured exclusive rights to the College Football Playoff through 2031 under a $7.8 billion deal, averaging $1.3 billion annually. Starting in 2026, the national championship game will move to ABC. This agreement reflects the playoff’s growing scale and significance.​

Looking Ahead to the 2025-2026 Bowl Season

As the 2025–2026 season approaches, these changes promise to deliver a more dynamic and inclusive postseason, offering fans and teams alike an enhanced college football experience.​ As the Buckeyes look to defend their title, Alabama, Texas, Oregon and many other powerhouses continue to reload making the upcoming season one you will not want to miss!

Recapping the 2024-2025 College Football Bowl Season

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The 2024–25 college football bowl season was marked by significant changes and memorable performances. This season introduced the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff (CFP), a shift from the previous four-team format, aiming to provide more teams with a pathway to the national championship.

College Football Playoff Highlights:

  • First Round: The inaugural first-round games were held on December 20 and 21, 2024, at campus sites. Notable outcomes included:
    • Notre Dame defeating Indiana 27–17 at Notre Dame Stadium.
    • Penn State securing a 38–10 victory over SMU at Beaver Stadium.
    • Texas overcoming Clemson with a 38–24 win at Texas Memorial Stadium.
    • Ohio State dominating Tennessee 42–17 at Ohio Stadium.
  • Quarterfinals: The quarterfinals took place from December 31, 2024, through January 2, 2025, at traditional bowl venues:
    • Penn State defeated Boise State 31–14 in the Fiesta Bowl.
    • Texas edged out Arizona State 39–31 in a double-overtime thriller at the Peach Bowl.
    • Ohio State upset the previously undefeated Oregon 41–21 in the Rose Bowl.
    • Notre Dame triumphed over Georgia 23–10 in the Sugar Bowl.
  • Semifinals: The semifinals were held on January 9 and 10, 2025:
    • In the Orange Bowl, Notre Dame secured a spot in the championship by defeating Penn State 27–24, with a late interception setting up the game-winning field goal.
    • At the Cotton Bowl, Ohio State earned their championship berth by overcoming Texas 28–14, bolstered by a key defensive stop and a fumble return for a touchdown.
  • Championship Game: The national championship is scheduled for January 20, 2025, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, featuring a historic matchup between Notre Dame and Ohio State. This game marks the first time these storied programs will face each other for the title in the CFP era.

Notable Storylines:

  • Coaching Movements: The season witnessed significant coaching changes, most notably Bill Belichick’s unexpected move to the University of North Carolina, signaling a trend of high-profile coaches transitioning to the college ranks.
  • Transfer Portal Dynamics: Player mobility increased, exemplified by quarterback Darian Mensah’s $8 million transfer from Tulane to Duke, highlighting the evolving landscape of player compensation and movement.
  • Viewership Trends: Despite the expanded playoff format, the CFP semifinals experienced a 17% drop in television ratings compared to the previous season, averaging 19.2 million viewers. This decline raises questions about viewer engagement with the new structure.

Conference Performances:

The bowl season also showcased varying performances across conferences. For instance, the Big Ten had a strong showing with multiple teams advancing deep into the CFP, while Conference USA faced challenges, recording a 1–4 bowl record.

As the season concludes, the college football landscape continues to evolve, balancing tradition with modern dynamics, setting the stage for future developments in the sport.

AAC edges the MAC to win the 2024-2025 Bowl Challenge Cup

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The 2024-2025 Bowl Challenge Cup results are in and The American Athletic Conference has edged the Mid-American Conference and the Big Ten to take 1st place. While the Big Ten has gotten the majority of the headlines, the AAC’s strong showing included wins by Army, East Carolina, Memphis, Navy, South Florida and UTSA with losses only coming from North Texas and Tulane. Their 6-2 record just edged the MAC which scored a conference-record 5 wins with a 5-2 record overall thanks to the efforts of Buffalo, Miami (OH), Northern Illinois, Ohio and Toledo. The Big Ten, which has a 7-4 record and two teams yet to play, cannot edge The American even if Ohio State and Penn State win their semifinal games. Note that opening round College Football Playoff games do not count as bowl games and therefore do not count in these standings.

Northern Illinois set to leave MAC to join Mountain West as football-only member

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The Northern Illinois Huskies set to join the Mountain West Conference (MWC) as a football-only member. The school has formally accepted an invitation from the conference, with its board of trustees scheduled to vote on the decision on Tuesday.

If approved, NIU will become part of the MWC starting July 1, 2026. The university will remain a full member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) for all other sports. The MAC will field 13 football teams in 2025 following UMass’ arrival as a football-only member, dropping back to 12 members when NIU leaves in 2026.

This season, NIU posted an 8-5 overall record, including a 4-4 finish in MAC play tied for 6th overall in the conference. The team’s most notable victory came in Week 2 against Notre Dame, which has since gone undefeated and will face Penn State in the Orange Bowl with a spot in the national championship game on the line.

The MWC is bolstering its football lineup as several of its members transition to the restructured Pac-12. By 2026, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State will join Oregon State and Washington State in the revamped Pac-12, and Gonzaga will also join the Pac-12 but in all sports except football. The Pac-12 is still seeking an eighth football member.

With NIU’s addition, the Mountain West will have nine football teams in 2026, enabling the conference to implement a round-robin eight-game schedule.