Imagine the icy breeze hitting your face, the windchill in the low 30s and snow flurries drifting from the heavens.
That’s what awaits Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss in our latest College Football Playoff 12-team mock as they march into the Big House for a first-round game in mid-December! Meanwhile, Lawrence, Kans., hosts the single-biggest event in the school’s history (basketball, be damned!), and the Vols travel to L.A. for a night in the Coliseum. Don’t forget about Jamey Chadwell and his Chanticleers, who drive five hours west for a Playoff game between the hedges.
Look, we all know that Bowl Season wants to host the four first-round Playoff games of the new expansion postseason. From their perspective, we get it. Neutral sites. At-the-ready amenities. Warm-weather climates.
But the beauty of college football (and college sports in general) is an on-campus, charged environment flowing with pageantry. It’s what separates college football from the NFL. It’s why we love it.
Our latest mock Playoff displays the different regions of this great country of ours: the South (Georgia); the Midwest (Michigan); the West (USC); and the Plains (Kansas). As a reminder, we are using the exact model that CFP executives adopted last month. The 12-team model features (1) automatic qualifiers to the six highest-ranked conference champions and (2) six at -large selections to the next six highest-ranked teams. The four highest-ranked conference champions get byes to the second round (independents are not eligible to receive a bye).
Something to keep in mind: We are seeding teams based not only on how they have performed, but also they performed against! The tougher your schedule, the better seed.
