The new college football season kicks off today with No. 10 Florida State taking on Georgia Tech over in Ireland. Week Zero is a tradition in college football that gets everything started for the new season ahead.
But this year, some things are very different. Instead of the four-team College Football Playoff that fans have become accustomed to, we will now see a 12-team Playoff.
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This gives more teams a chance to compete for the National Championship and allows a little more leeway throughout the season. Especially within conferences such as the Big Ten and SEC, having the leeway to potentially drop a game within the loaded schedules can keep a team’s chances alive.
But what exactly does the 12-team Playoff look like?
Well, Newsweek Sports has everything you need to know.
Who are the teams being included?
The 12 teams selected for the Playoff will be the five conference champions ranked highest by the College Football Playoff committee. The final seven teams will come from the highest-ranked teams left over.
The conference champions ranked highest will be seeded one through four. To reward their success during the year, these teams will be given a bye week for the first round of the Playoffs.
Any non-conference champion ranked in the top four when the selection begins will be seeded starting at No. 5. Due to this, the final Playoff seeding will likely look different from the final rankings.
Where will the games be played?
Teams ranked five through 12 will each face off in matchups based on higher seeds hosting the lower ones. For instance, the No. 5 ranked team will play the No. 12 team, No. 6 faces off against No. 11, and so on.
The higher-ranked team can choose to have the game played at their home field on campus or at another site chosen by the team. Most squads will likely choose to have the home-field advantage for at least one game in the Playoff.
Will there be re-seeding after each round of the Playoff?
The answer is no. The bracket will remain in effect throughout the Playoffs, regardless of whether rematches or the same conference games are played.
Like in previous championship games, the SEC could have two teams play in the title game. It could even have four teams be part of the final group of teams left standing.
This new 12-team Playoff may be a work in progress for the year, but it’s something many have wanted for years. It’s finally time for the season to kick off, and the race to the Playoff will be unlike anything we have seen before.
More news: Big 12 Conference Considering Another Expansion to Teams: Report
