(09-05-2022 07:48 AM)RUScarlets Wrote: (09-05-2022 07:16 AM)Crayton Wrote: (09-05-2022 07:10 AM)goofus Wrote: I am confused. The following language was in the link you provided
6. Subject to reaching agreement with bowls, the four quarterfinal games and two Playoff Semifinal games would be played in bowls on a rotating basis.
7. The national championship game will continue to be played at a neutral site.
8. 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.
9. 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
That to me clearly spells out they intend for the quarterfinals to be in the bowls.
Yep. But no mention that those bowls will be on New Years Day. That is the part that WAS stated last year but has been dropped this year. The first-round also WAS pinned to the third weekend of December, but now language opens it up to being on the second again.
This is the kind of language that leaves open the possibility of moving 4 Bowls, the Cotton/Peach/Fiesta and maybe Citrus/Gator/Orange back to the third weekend of December. There won't be a bye week for Army/Navy and Heisman in that case, but I believe they mentioned the first round taking place after Army/Navy, which would nullify the hypothesis. I'm not holding out hope of SF getting fixed on NYD.
I don't think that's happening.
1. Easiest point first: Army-Navy game is not mentioned in the CFP release. They don't care. Not their circus, not their monkeys.
2. You're generally making this unduly complicated to fit what you (maybe both of us) think it should be. They picked up the proposal from last year and they're moving forward with it. Plan A is 3 quarterfinal bowls on New Years Day (4th QF close as they can get), with the 6 major bowls rotating QFs and semis. Plan B only comes into play if the bowls are feeling froggy and think they have more leverage than they do.
3. They're just not worried at all about semifinals on Thursday and Friday nights on TV, about filling the stadiums for the semifinals. They don't care that the NCG could be on Monday January 26 once in a while.
4. Not as well established: This is a very ESPN-friendly format, geared to fill windows ESPN would like filled with high-audience games. ESPN is the CFP television partner, so they can communicate freely without limits. I suspect that the OTA networks might have made an alternate case for a more December-centered, Saturday-centered playoff with fewer games reaching larger audiences, but they weren't in the room and probably won't be. (Even if the contract does go to market, it goes to market in this format which the TV networks will be invited to bid on.
I think Fox (NBC, CBS) would have been favorable to a format with 2 first round games (5 vs 8, 6 vs 7) the second Saturday, 2 second round games on the Third Saturday, Rose and Sugar as semifinals, National Championship Game at 1:00 to kick off NFL Wild Card Weekend. But that's not on the table.