The enhanced 12-team College Football Playoff has now narrowed down to its final four contenders, a familiar scenario reminiscent of the previous decade’s format.
Among the remaining teams, two represent the Big Ten, one hails from the Southeastern Conference, and there’s also Notre Dame, marking its third consecutive semifinal appearance with a record of 13-1.
This scenario highlights the continued dominance of the sport’s wealthiest leagues, as they occupy three of the last four positions for the third time in four seasons, even without their regular-season champions still in contention.
Ohio State (12-2) and Penn State (13-2) are the Big Ten representatives, making it the second time in three years that the conference boasts two semifinal teams. Meanwhile, the SEC has prolonged its remarkable streak as the only conference with an entry in the playoff every year, thanks to Texas (13-2), a newcomer this season, making its second consecutive appearance.
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian emphasized the challenges of competing in the SEC, calling it a premier football conference due to the demanding physical and mental toughness required week after week. He expressed pride in representing the SEC in this playoff.
Having claimed the Big 12 championship in their inaugural playoff appearance last year, Texas recently transitioned to an SEC team alongside Oklahoma, expanding the league to 16 teams. Their two losses this season came against Georgia in both the regular season and the SEC title match. Notably, Texas is the only team from last year’s playoff group to qualify for this expanded 12-team format.
As a first-time semifinalist, Penn State has already faced two playoff challengers in the postseason. Their upcoming game in the Orange Bowl against Notre Dame will be their 16th of the season, a record number for them.
Ohio State, which last secured a national championship during the first edition of the four-team playoff ten years prior, has reached this stage for the fifth time, trailing only Alabama and Clemson in total semifinal appearances. The Buckeyes will clash with Texas in the Cotton Bowl semifinal.
Despite the increased number of playoff slots—tripling the field size and ensuring automatic spots for five conference champions—the Big Ten and SEC have collectively captured seven out of the twelve playoff positions (four from the Big Ten and three from the SEC).
Historically, this overlap of the two leagues taking a majority of playoff slots highlights a continuing trend. In the earlier ten years of the four-team setup, the SEC occupied 30% of the available slots with twelve entries, while the Big Ten managed nine. The ACC had seven slots, though it has not presented a semifinalist since 2020.
Agent to those seeking change, Notre Dame’s offensive coordinator, Mike Denbrock, noted the strength of traditional programs, like Michigan’s resurgence last year, as they compete against leagues that dominate the playoff landscape. While he remained cautious about labeling it a definitive trend, he expressed a desire for it to be so, especially as they contend against the competition.
The Big Ten holds the potential to accomplish a feat previously achieved only by the SEC—having two of its teams face off for the national championship.
Since the BCS formation in 1998 and its evolution into the CFP in 2014, the SEC has been the only conference to witness such a matchup; Alabama has been involved in all instances, with their championship games against Georgia resulting in one victory each in 2017 and 2021.
Should both Penn State and Ohio State progress to the title game on January 20 in Atlanta, it would set up a rematch of their earlier regular-season meeting, where Penn State suffered their only defeat at home to Ohio State.
With the possibility of competing in 17 games this season, equal to that of an NFL regular season, both Texas and Penn State are gearing up for their 16th match this week.
Following a loss to Georgia in the SEC championship, Texas has since triumphed over Clemson and Arizona State. Meanwhile, Penn State, after falling to Oregon in the Big Ten finale, has advanced by overcoming SMU and Boise State.
