Explaining new CFP rules that would have omitted UM from field. And Canes news
Long before the UM-Notre Dame controversy created a national firestorm, the College Football Playoff put rules in place that essentially would have left the Hurricanes out of the playoffs if this situation unfolds next season.
As Yahoo’s Ross Dellenger reported this week, as part of a memorandum of understanding signed by CFP officials last spring, Notre Dame will be assured of making the playoff if it is ranked in the CFP’s top 12 beginning in 2026. That deal runs for six seasons.
If that rule had been in place this season, the final at-large playoff team (No. 10 Miami) automatically would have been removed from the playoff field and replaced by No. 11 Notre Dame.
If the playoff expands to 14 teams and there are more at-large berths added to the field (from seven to nine), Notre Dame is guaranteed a spot in the playoff field if it is ranked No. 13 or better, according to the memorandum of understanding.
Next year’s field is expected to remain 12. The Southeastern Conference would like the field to expand to 16 teams. The Big 10 would prefer a 24-team field. Discussions are ongoing.
Besides the new Notre Dame top-12 rule, there’s a second new rule that will affect the selection of the playoff field.
Per ESPN’s Heather Dinich, conference commissioners and Notre Dame last year agreed that beginning in 2026, the conference champions from the ACC, Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 and the highest-ranked Group of 5 champion would earn playoff berths. Dinich reported this week that a memorandum of understanding has been signed with those terms.
That rule, if it had been in place this season, would have sent Duke to the College Football Playoff by virtue of its win against Virginia in the ACC Championship Game.
But the College Football Committee bypassed Duke, because the current rule requires the five highest-ranked conference champions receive playoff berths. That’s why Sun Belt championship James Madison and American Athletic champion Tulane received automatic bids instead of Duke.
If Duke had received an automatic bid, it’s possible that the Hurricanes still would have received an at-large invitation. But there’s no guarantee.
The Canes (10-2) and Blue Devils (8-5) were among five teams that finished tied for second in the ACC at 6-2 — behind 7-1 Virginia.
But Duke qualified for the conference championship game because of the fifth tiebreaker: conference opponent win percentage. The ACC approved those tiebreakers before the College Football Playoff field was expanded from four to 12 schools.
In a phone interview last week, UM athletic director Dan Radakovich said the ACC needs to consider changing the tiebreaker procedures to guarantee that the ACC “puts its best foot forward” in the conference championship game.
“I don’t have anything specific in mind,” he said. “I know we will talk about it in February when the [athletic directors] get together. There will be a discussion. A review of the tiebreakers [is warranted].
“Tiebreakers we have now should be more akin to two- or three-team tiebreakers as opposed to three- or four-team tiebreakers. The ones we utilize and the ones a lot of conferences utilize have to be looked at given the unbalanced scheduling and the large number of teams” in conferences.
If teams don’t play head-to-head, what about the idea of awarding the tiebreaker to the team with the highest CFP ranking, as the American Athletic Conference does? Radakovich cites one problem with that suggestion: The rankings are released Tuesday night and the ACC Championship is played five days later. “If we were going with that for the championship game, you wouldn’t know until today and we’re playing the game on Saturday,” Radakovich said Tuesday.
“From a preparation perspective for the coaches and the ability to sell tickets and get people to the game, that would be very difficult to do.
One potential solution: The ACC could request that the selection committee releases its penultimate rankings on the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend, which would solve the timing issue.
This and that
▪ If the Hurricanes beat Texas A&M on Dec. 20 (noon, ABC, ESPN), then Miami would play Ohio State in Dallas in a quarterfinal game at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 31.
▪ UM freshman receiver Malachi Toney’s 84 receptions were most in the country for any receiver without a dropped pass.
▪ Among Notre Dame’s complaints in recent days was being shocked to be excluded from the playoffs after being ranked ahead of Miami by the CFP in all five rankings before Sunday. But ESPN isn’t going to eliminate the Tuesday night show; at the network’s request, it’s contractually obligated to carry five rankings shows.
UM and Notre Dame are set to play Nov. 7 in South Bend, Indiana, next season.
▪ Cristobal told WQAM’s Joe Rose that 29 of UM’s 30 Class of 2026 commitments will enroll in January.
This story was originally published December 9, 2025 at 3:52 PM.
