In any sport, the first year of a new postseason format is always a whirlwind: fans are getting used to the bracket, commentators are searching for fresh ways to describe old concepts, and everyone’s debating who was “snubbed” or who doesn’t “deserve” to be there. But by the second year, things start to calm down. The chaos gives way to familiarity, and the new format starts to feel like a natural part of the sport’s landscape.
This is where college football finds itself now. The 2025–26 College Football Playoff marks the second season of the 12-team model, and things are starting to take shape. While the first year was all about learning the new structure and adjusting to the changes, the debates this time around have shifted. Instead of questioning why the playoff is set up this way, fans and analysts are now asking how teams should best navigate it. The sport is adjusting to the new reality, and it’s beginning to breathe easier in the 12-team era.
What’s significant about the 12-team format is that it has fundamentally changed the stakes of the regular season. Yes, regular-season games still matter, but their significance has been recalibrated. In the old system, a September loss could be a death sentence for a team’s postseason hopes. Now, that early setback doesn’t necessarily mean the end of the road. It’s a “strategic scar” that teams can work around, and that shift keeps more fanbases invested deeper into the season. You no longer have to be perfect to make the playoff, and that’s a huge win for the sport. But it also means the nerves are more stretched than ever, as teams navigate the balance between recovering from early losses and managing the intensity of a lengthy race to the finish.
The playoff’s expanded format also shifts the timeline. Media guides and schedules now build toward a crescendo of excitement, with quarterfinals and semifinals taking center stage in early January. This extended timeline keeps college football in the spotlight longer, creating a sustained wave of excitement that fans, players, and coaches alike are getting used to. No longer does the season feel like it ends abruptly after the conference championships; now, the postseason feels like an ongoing saga that intensifies as each round brings new high-stakes drama.
But perhaps the most significant change is the impact on competition itself. Depth and health are now more important than ever. In previous years, a team could coast through their schedule by dominating a few weaker opponents, knowing their overall résumé would carry them to the playoff. Now, it’s about adaptability. A team that crushes a weak opponent one week might find itself struggling against a team with a completely different style just a few days later. The new playoff structure isn’t just about building the best résumé; it’s about who can adapt, adjust, and manage the unpredictability of a longer postseason.
For coaches, the adjustment has been equally profound. In the old system, November was all about “don’t mess it up.” If you had a shot at a playoff spot, your primary goal was simply to avoid losing not necessarily to peak, but to hold steady. Now, teams are being forced to reconsider their approach. Peak performance has to come at the right time, not just over the course of the season. There’s no longer a clear-cut path through a conference championship to a playoff berth, so coaches are focusing on more nuanced strategies, from player rotations to timing their team’s momentum to perfection.
For fans, the upside is obvious: more meaningful games throughout the season. Every week now feels important, even in the middle of the season, as teams jockey for playoff positioning. However, there’s a downside: emotional inflation. A season that used to end abruptly with a single loss now stretches on, with fans holding onto hope for much longer. The thrill of the regular season is extended, but so is the vulnerability that comes with that hope. Teams are expected to deliver more consistently, and fans can no longer simply write off a loss early in the season as something that’s easily forgotten.
As with any major shift in the landscape, the 12-team playoff era won’t eliminate controversy it will simply change the nature of it. The old arguments about who was snubbed for a spot in the playoff will likely fade, replaced by new debates over things like seeding, matchups, and how teams manage their rotations. The intricacies of a longer postseason will open up fresh avenues for scrutiny, with fans, analysts, and coaches all weighing in on how teams should approach the playoff format.
Ultimately, the 12-team era of college football is a step forward, even if it brings its own set of complexities and challenges. It’s not the simple, cut-and-dry approach we had before, but it’s also more dynamic and engaging. The sport is evolving, and with that evolution comes a new way of thinking about what it means to win a championship. The debate over the best path to glory is more complicated now, but that’s the nature of progress in college football. The 12-team era may not end controversy, but it will create new and exciting dimensions to it. And that’s exactly what college football needs.