What's next for the CFP teams and NCAA football?
The GIST: And just like that, the final four-team College Football Playoff (CFP) has come to an end following No. 1 Michigan’s dominant 34–13 national championship game win over No. 2 Washington on Monday.
- Now with 227 days until the fun kicks off again, there’s plenty of time to speculate about what’s next for CFP teams and NCAA football at large.
What’s next for the players: The NFL for a number of them. Michigan running back Blake Corum had two touchdowns in the title game, earning him offensive MVP honors and boosting his stock ahead of April’s NFL Draft. And while Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. struggled on Monday, the Heisman Trophy runner-up will still likely hear his name called in the first round.
What’s next for Jim Harbaugh: Perhaps the NFL, too. Michigan’s head coach didn’t let a little cheating scandal stop him from leading the Wolverines to their first national title since 1997, and now that he’s reached the promised land, rumors are swirling that he might return to the pros, where he last helmed the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2014.
What’s next for NCAA football: Not the NFL, but some major changes. Monday marked the end of the CFP format as we know it, with the four-team model giving way to a 12-team, bracket style tourney next year.
- Teams will also be competing in different conferences: amid conference realignment chaos, the Pac-12 will cease to exist as teams bolt for the Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC. New era, who dis?
