Whether Clemson football fans like it or not, it seems almost as a foregone conclusion currently that we’ll be seeing an expanded CFB Playoff in the near future.
The CFB Playoff committee announced that its sub-group had made recommendations to expand the field from its current four teams and to make it 12 teams.
In this proposal, the field will be made up of the highest-ranked six conference champions and then six at-large bids. The top four conference champions would hold a bye through the first round.
Clemson football fans are going to need one thing to be tweaked, though, in this new expanded playoff proposal
We can talk all day about the fact that the playoff is going to turn into the ‘SEC invitational‘ no matter if it’s earned or not. There are going to be multiple SEC teams earn at-large bids every year whether or not they deserve to.
But we’re not talking about that aspect today.
In my opinion, the playoff committee is going to have to consider changing its format when it comes to where these games are played.
The current proposal is that the first-round (when the 5-12 seeds play) would allow the higher-ranked seeds an opportunity to host. The next three rounds, however, would be neutral-site matchups.
For any Clemson football fan who has been a part of CFB Playoff in the past six years, you know just how expensive it can become. It’s tough enough for many fans to make two postseason trips (semifinals and finals) as expensive as the bowl games and National Championship tickets- not even counting air fare or nightly stays- have become, but it would become almost impossible for many in the fan base- not just at Clemson, but everywhere- to make three trips to neutral-site venues.
And, honestly, it just seems ridiculous.
Why wouldn’t we want to show the pageantry of College Football? Why wouldn’t we want to award a top-four seed with a playoff game in their home venue?
I understand that bowl money is still a big part of the discussion, but at some point you’ve got to look out for the fan bases and those players involved, as well.
Why not make the four games in the first-round part of the neutral-site games and then award those top four seeds with a home game in the second-round? It would make the regular season matter more- because you’d want to position yourself as high as possible to earn the bye and a home game- and would award those teams that are truly at the top, instead of the other way around.
I know many Clemson fans simply couldn’t afford to pay to make three trips at the same pay rate they’ve made in the past and what you’re going to see if you don’t make this tweak is fan bases having to pick and choose what games they attend, which could in turn lead to empty seats in venues.