College Football Playoff title games for 2024-25 move up a week

IRVING, Texas — After three years, the College Football Playoff has settled into a comfortable routine that necessitates occasional fine-tuning rather than dramatic change.

Among the tweaks coming out of the Playoff’s annual meetings were changes to dates of two future championship games. When the Playoff reversed its initial policy of playing the semifinals on New Year’s Eve — after an acknowledged failure to create a new tradition — it created longer gaps between the semifinals and championship games. The management committee voted to move the championship games after the 2024 and 2025 seasons up one week.

In the 2024 season, the semifinals will be played Dec. 28. The championship game, which was to have been played 16 days later, on Jan. 13, 2025, but will instead be played Jan. 6. In the 2025 season, the semifinals are on Dec. 27; the championship game has been moved from Jan. 12 to Jan. 5.

“We just think it’s better this way,” CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock said of the scheduling changes. “… Teams don’t go 16 days between games routinely during the season. And while there would be coaches who would welcome the opportunity to let nicks and cuts heal up (between the semifinals and the championship), I think most people would rather go ahead and play it.”

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There remains one year with a large gap. In the 2019 season, the gap between the semifinals (Dec. 28, 2019) and the championship game in New Orleans (Jan. 13, 2020) will be 16 days. Hancock said the management committee, comprised of 10 FBS conference commissioners of the 10 FBS conferences and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick, wanted to move the championship game to Jan. 6 but couldn’t because they were unable to change hotel contracts already in place.

Other news after four days of meetings:

► No changes were made to the protocol used by the selection committee or the scheduling of its rankings releases for the 2017 season. Beginning at midseason, the selection committee will meet six times in Grapevine, Texas, to produce the Playoff Top 25.

The first rankings of the 2017 season will be released on Halloween — Tuesday, Oct. 31. Four more rankings will be released each succeeding Tuesday. The final rankings will be released Sunday, Dec. 3. ESPN will televise each ranking.

► While the management committee has not determined an exact timeline to award future championship sites, Hancock said he expects to announce some by this time next year. The next three championships will be played in Atlanta (Jan. 8, 2018), Santa Clara, Calif. (Jan. 7, 2019) and New Orleans (Jan. 13, 2020).

Hancock noted the first six championship games will have been played in six different states and said the management committee would like to continue to move the game around — though he didn’t preclude returning to a previous site.

Along with a minimum stadium capacity of 65,000, the requirements include a proven ability to host big events, necessary infrastructure (airport and hotels, for example). The management committee does not want to have championship games where a semifinal is played in the same season. And weather concerns remain a limiting factor — meaning in colder climes, domed stadiums would presumably be required.

“You don’t want the elements to be a competitive factor,” Hancock said. “You want the best competitive environment possible. That’s primary. Secondary, you want the best environment for the fans. Competitive environment is key here.”

Although Hancock said each of the first three championship sites (Irving, Texas; Glendale, Ariz.; and Tampa) provided successful experiences, he said the management committee was especially pleased with what he called a “festival-like feel” when Tampa, with a compact downtown footprint, hosted the championship game last January.

“It added another dimension,” Hancock said. “Our question as event organizers is how many cities can actually deliver that? And I think y’all know, there aren’t very many.”

► The management committee extended the practice of paying expenses for players’ families to travel to the semifinals and the championship games for the 2017 season. Under NCAA rules, the Playoff is allowed to provide $2,500 each for 125 families per school for the semifinals, and again for the championship game.

“We’ve been delighted to be able to do it,” Hancock said.

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