Among the comments and concerns regarding this expanded format of the college football playoffsone of the biggest criticisms concerns the inclusion of the place, or even places in some cases, of the Group of Five. Josh Patéhowever, had to remind us this morning that legally, they cannot be excluded from the field for the CFP.
Pate discussed this point while appearing live on ‘Get Up’ on THURSDAY. In response to a notice from Taylor Lewan that the Group of Five, in addition to teams going undefeated in a given season, for which he apologized by saying that despite the feeling that it was playing “big boy football,” Pate had to remind those in the office that due to antitrust law and in this format, there literally cannot be any exclusion of members of the Group of Five.
“The Group of Five will still be part of the current structure because it is literally illegal not to include it for antitrust reasons,” Pate said. “You’re talking about logic and, for example, defining competition rather than maintaining the G5. It’s really a financial umbilical cord that keeps them hanging on.”
The Group of Five has been a talking point since the College Football Playoff was expanded, with the field’s first edition taking place last season in 2024. It was constructed to allow the five highest-ranked conference champions into the bracket, which should go to the title winners of each Power Four league and one, now, especially since the end of what we called the Pac-12, the Group of Five.
Last season, Boise State (12-1) was the representative after winning the Mountain West, as they were already ranked in the Top 10 in the final CFP rankings. In fact, with the eventual ACC champion’s low rating in Clemsonwould earn the Broncos a bye, as they would lose to Penn State in their playoff quarterfinal game at the Fiesta Bowl by a final score of 31-14.
However, this season there is a world that two G5 teams could enter. Also due to the state of the Atlantic Coast Conference, current projections give the winner of the American Championship, whether No. 24 North Texas (11-1) Or No. 20 Tulane (10-2)leading to the PCP, while No. 25 James Madison (11-1) from the Sun Belt could also find their way to the College Football Playoff. This makes the situation particularly frustrating for some fan bases, as there is already a big debate among the latest at-larges, with some very big brands in the sport involved, and this is further complicated by the necessary inclusion of one, and what could end up being two, Group of Five champion(s).
Again, this is a complicated topic, because a championship opportunity in college football can’t be limited to those in the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 or ACC. That said, ESPN’s Mike Greenberg pointed out that, when it comes to college brackets and their circumstances, the College Football Playoff mid-majors are not necessarily the same as the NCAA Tournament mid-majors.
“It’s different. It’s a different sport,” Greenberg commented. “College basketball? Many of us think the texture of this tournament comes from letting the mid-majors compete against each other and see what they can do. But it’s different, because that makes 68 teams and here only 12.”
We’ll need more seasons of data and results to determine what the playoff spot can actually mean for those in the Group of Five. Still, as for removing them altogether, Pate wanted to remind everyone that that’s not exactly an option when it comes to the CFP.
