The Case for Reseeding in the College Football Playoff

@ Kirby Lee-Imagn-Images

A strong case exists for reseeding in the College Football Playoff. Indeed, seeding teams anew following every round in the CFP would facilitate the dual goals of 1) rewarding teams that earned the highest rankings based on their regular-season performance and 2) enhancing the chances of a matchup between the two best teams in the championship game.

The original seedings of 10 of the 12 teams included in the postseason tournament differ from their final CFP rankings.

Final CFP Rankings

The CFP selection committee ranked 25 teams. However, for purposes of this discussion, only the top 16 need to be listed, as the team ranked No. 16 (Clemson) was the lowest-ranked team included in the 12-team playoff field.

1. Oregon

2. Georgia

3. Texas

4. Penn State

5. Notre Dame

6. Ohio State

7. Tennessee

8. Indiana

9. Boise State

10. SMU

11. Alabama

12. Arizona State

13. Miami

14. Ole Miss

15. South Carolina

16. Clemson

CFP Seedings

The top-12 seeded teams are listed below in order, with their final rankings noted parenthetically: Only No. 1 Oregon and No. 2 Georgia have identical rankings and seedings.

1. Oregon (1)

2. Georgia (2)

3. Boise State (9)

4. Arizona State (12)

5. Texas (3)

6. Penn State (4)

7. Notre Dame (5)

8. Ohio State (6)

9. Tennessee (7)

10. Indiana (8)

11. SMU (10)

12. Clemson (16)

Reseeding in the College Football Playoff

The NFL has adopted reseeding for its playoffs for the express purpose of rewarding the highest-seeded teams for excelling in the regular season. Curiously, the NFL is the only major American sports league that reseeds in its playoffs.

When reseeding occurs after each round in a postseason tournament, the top-ranked remaining team faces off against the lowest-ranked remaining squad. Employment of such a system avoids anomalies like those presented in the current CFP, with Las Vegas oddsmakers assessing that No. 1 Oregon has a lesser chance of winning the championship than lower-ranked competitors.

If the eight remaining teams in the playoff had been reseeded following the first round of the tournament, the following matchups would have been scheduled:

• No. 1 Oregon vs. No. 12 Arizona State

• No. 2 Georgia vs. No. 9 Boise State

• No. 3 Texas vs. No. 6 Ohio State

• No. 4 Penn State vs. No. 5 Notre Dame

Undefeated and top-ranked Oregon would undoubtedly be favored over Arizona State. However, Oregon is instead playing Ohio State, and the Buckeyes are favored by 2.5 points. Requiring the Ducks to play their initial CFP game against a team favored over them is not a merit-based result. Oregon defeated Ohio State in the regular season and earned its No. 1 ranking. The Ducks' accomplishments should have been rewarded by reseeding, resulting in them playing the lowest-ranked remaining team.

While it's too late for the problem to be fixed this season, CFP decision-makers can and should adopt a merit-based reseeding system in the future.