The conference commissioners have been meeting in Chicago all week trying to hash out a way to make everyone happy about a four team playoff to determine the college football champion.
The Pac 12 and Big Ten have both decided to back the four team playoff concept which will be played within the existing bowl structure. The plus one championship game would be played at the stadium of the highest bidder. The one stipulation that both conferences have made is the selection of teams would be somehow weighed more toward conference champions.
The details concerning how everything will work will be hashed out in the back rooms in coming weeks. We all know that the Pac 12 and Big Ten prefer to have their champions meet each year in the Rose Bowl. The hope is that will continue most years going forward.
The Rose Bowl will be part of a bowl rotation that will host the semi-final games. No word yet on which bowl games will be included in that rotation but one would assume the Sugar, Orange, Fiesta, maybe the Cotton, and perhaps the new Champions Bowl (depending on where it his hosted) would all be in the mix.
How the four teams will be selected is still being debated. Strength of schedule and conference champions will figure heavily into that equation which is something the Pac 12 demanded since year in and year out they play the toughest cumulative schedule in college football.
The final plan will be presented to the University Presidents to vote on next week. Expect the Presidents to go along with whatever the Commissioners come up with.