Post by bigdawgs on Dec 21, 2023 10:18:08 GMT -5
Any chance they move the CFB calendar to start the CFP earlier? The NFL can’t play on the second Saturday in December, and it would be perfect for the CFP. However, I love rivalry weekend over Thanksgiving, and the longer CFB lasts through the Midwest winter the better, so I think I prefer the current schedule as is. — Derek D., Des Moines, Iowa
It’s been nearly two years since I wrote my first column urging exactly that. I have not heard of any recent momentum for moving the season up a week — but I think they’re going to have to at some point. For several reasons.
One, which was not even on my radar 23 months ago, is the transfer portal. Anyone who wants to transfer and be in position to participate in spring practices at their new schools will have to be enrolled for the start of spring semester in mid-January. Well, next year’s national championship game is not until Jan. 20. I don’t think you can expect a guy to wait and see how far his team makes it in the Playoff before deciding whether to enter the portal in the early window or wait until spring. The teams will absolutely lose players that might have otherwise been counted on in the game.
Then there’s the TV windows. In their attempt to jam the semifinals in between rounds of the NFL playoffs, next year’s are being played on a Thursday and Friday night, Jan. 9 and 10. Not only is that not a doubleheader, but Friday is the worst night of the week for television. The CFP semis and title game are usually going to be the three most-watched sporting events of the year outside of the NFL, and they’re going to waste one of them on a Friday night? Also, what an ask for fans that want to attend the games: Travel to Miami or Dallas in the middle of a regular ‘ol work week, detached from any holidays.
And finally, as I emphasized in that 2022 column, the championship game is going to take place roughly 24 hours after the NFL’s four-game divisional round, one of the most all-consuming sports weekends of the year. I fear it’s going to feel like an afterthought, coming nearly three weeks after New Year’s and happening the same week as the AFC and NFC championship games.
The obvious solution is to turn what is currently Week 0 into Week 1, move the conference championship games up to Thanksgiving weekend, and play both the first-round and quarterfinal rounds on campuses in December, so the semis and title game can remain where they currently are. It won’t happen overnight, but after experiencing the first couple years of the calendar they’ve created, we could see a pivot in 2026.
It’s been nearly two years since I wrote my first column urging exactly that. I have not heard of any recent momentum for moving the season up a week — but I think they’re going to have to at some point. For several reasons.
One, which was not even on my radar 23 months ago, is the transfer portal. Anyone who wants to transfer and be in position to participate in spring practices at their new schools will have to be enrolled for the start of spring semester in mid-January. Well, next year’s national championship game is not until Jan. 20. I don’t think you can expect a guy to wait and see how far his team makes it in the Playoff before deciding whether to enter the portal in the early window or wait until spring. The teams will absolutely lose players that might have otherwise been counted on in the game.
Then there’s the TV windows. In their attempt to jam the semifinals in between rounds of the NFL playoffs, next year’s are being played on a Thursday and Friday night, Jan. 9 and 10. Not only is that not a doubleheader, but Friday is the worst night of the week for television. The CFP semis and title game are usually going to be the three most-watched sporting events of the year outside of the NFL, and they’re going to waste one of them on a Friday night? Also, what an ask for fans that want to attend the games: Travel to Miami or Dallas in the middle of a regular ‘ol work week, detached from any holidays.
And finally, as I emphasized in that 2022 column, the championship game is going to take place roughly 24 hours after the NFL’s four-game divisional round, one of the most all-consuming sports weekends of the year. I fear it’s going to feel like an afterthought, coming nearly three weeks after New Year’s and happening the same week as the AFC and NFC championship games.
The obvious solution is to turn what is currently Week 0 into Week 1, move the conference championship games up to Thanksgiving weekend, and play both the first-round and quarterfinal rounds on campuses in December, so the semis and title game can remain where they currently are. It won’t happen overnight, but after experiencing the first couple years of the calendar they’ve created, we could see a pivot in 2026.