Boise State spitting fire on seeding
This week has seen massive changes to the College Football Playoff, thanks to the playoff committee voting to change how the teams are seeded in upcoming seasons.
After just one year when first round byes were handed out based on winning a conference championship, moving forward, seeding will be based exclusively on the committee’s ranking heading into the tournament. This will have a tremendous impact on everything from scheduling to bowl game matchups to the importance of conference championships.
But beyond what it means for the power conferences, it’s also going to impact smaller schools like Boise State. The Broncos entered the playoffs ranked ninth in the final poll, but wound up as the No. 3 seed, securing a first-round bye after winning the Mountain West Conference. And their athletic director, Jeremiah Dickey, just called the committee out for what it’ll do to his school.
GLENDALE, Ariz. – Ashton Jeanty #2 of the Boise State Broncos shakes hands with fans following the 2024 Vrbo Fiesta Bowl against the Penn State Nittany Lions at State Farm Stadium on December 31, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. Penn State defeated Boise State 31-14. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Boise State Losing Out In New Seeding Format
Dickey posted on X Thursday night about the seeding, tagging the official College Football Playoff account in doing so.
“@CFBPlayoff, please call it the Boise State policy…legacy is important…would make us feel better.
“When the system is created to keep you down, you fight like hell to break it. Nothing to lose…Always What’s Next! Believe in epic! 1-0! #BleedBlue”
He has a point.
The issue with committee seeding is that it’s impossible to keep everyone happy. The first iteration of the expanded playoff was marred by disagreements over who received byes, strength of schedule disagreements, and whether the committee should do more to reward major conference programs.
These new changes certainly reward major conference programs.
For example, in the 2024-2025 playoff, both Texas and Penn State would have received byes, while Boise State would have played a road game against Indiana. Very different from having a week off and playing in the Fiesta Bowl in Phoenix.
There are even more changes coming, with automatic qualifiers currently up for debate, as well as expansion to 14 or even 16 teams. But it is clear, as the Boise State AD posts, that smaller schools don’t have the same influence that the Big Ten or SEC have. That’s the reality of the modern college football landscape, and it’s not changing in Boise State’s favor anytime soon.
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