Changes coming: CFP leaders close to revising seeding and first-round bye structure

The College Football Playoff's power brokers are nearing consensus to change the seeding process next season and eliminate first-round byes for conference champions, sources told CBS Sports.

The "straight seeding" proposal has gained support from the ACC and Big 12 in recent weeks, sources said. On Wednesday, ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said for the first time that the format "may be the right thing for us to consider." CFP administrators must approve the proposal, which could happen within the next month, sources said. The proposal requires unanimous approval from the 10 FBS conferences and Notre Dame to be enacted for the 2025-26 season.

The Big Ten and SEC openly supported a shift to straight seeding during a meeting between conference athletic directors and administrators in March.

The CFP expanded to 12 teams for the 2024 season, with the top four conference champions receiving first-round byes. Starting in 2025, straight seeding would eliminate those automatic byes and instead reward the top four teams in the CFP selection committee's final rankings.

The 12-team format's contract expires at the end of the upcoming season. Discussions about expanding the field to 14 or 16 teams -- with multiple automatic qualifiers reserved for the four power conferences -- have been ongoing for months. Administrators are hopeful a format will be approved by the time CFP officials meet June 18.