Since the initial decision was made on ushering in a college football playoff format, the discussion among fans quickly turned to playoff expansion beyond the four teams.
Back in December, the decision to expand the playoff to 12 teams was made, and the next step was to figure out the logistics, and there had been no shortage of folks weighing in with opinions and options the last few months.
Today, Bill Hancock, the executive director of the College Football Playoff, confirmed that the first round of the expanded playoff in 2024 will be an early Christmas present for college football fans.
Literally.
The first round of games are set to take place the third week of December. These games will be hosted on campus of the higher seed. One game will take place on Friday night, with three Saturday games that will have to compete for the attention of fans on the same day that NFL games are taking place.
For some perspective, that could mean some facing off against some really competitive Week 16 NFL games, when the playoff picture is starting to take shape and things could get really interesting.
Last year, that weekend's games included the Eagles vs. Cowboys, Lions and Panthers, Seahawks and Chiefs, Bengals and Patriots, Giants and Vikings, and Commanders and Niners.
New Years day will be the host day for three of the four quarterfinal contests.
The college football semifinals will then take place on a midweek day, to avoid further conflict with NFL Wild Card weekends.
With the expanded format, the new date for the national title game is expected to be January 20, for the 2025 game, Hancock shared today.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.