A four-team college football playoff has been approved by the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee and will begin after the conclusion of the 2014 regular season.
The committee, which consists of one president from each of the BCS conferences plus Notre Dame, made their announcement today after a meeting in Washington, DC.
A selection committee, the details of which haven’t been decided yet, will seed the playoff teams 1-4. No. 1 will play no. 4 and no. 2 will play no. 3 with the winners meeting in the national championship game.
The semifinal teams will be selected for the playoff based on four factors: won-loss record, strength of schedule, head-to-head, and if a team won their conference.
Semifinal games will be played under the existing bowl structure with the first game on New Years Eve and the second on New Years Day. The national championship game will then be played approximately one week later on a Monday night. The first is slated for January 12, 2015.
The national championship game will rotate yearly and will be hosted by the highest bidder. Semifinal games will rotate among a group of six bowls, which will likely include the current BCS Bowls (Fiesta, Orange, Rose, Sugar) and two others.
According to BCS executive director Bill Hancock, strength of schedule will play a big part in the playoff component. “I think strength of schedule is going to be a very important part of this. Who did you play? Where did you play them? How did you do? I think you are going to have to play a good schedule in order to make it into a playoff.”
While there are still a lot of details to be resolved, at least we have confirmation that a playoff will begin after the 2014 season. While four teams may not be enough for some, it’s a good start and a historic day for college football.