Conference commissioners are considering the possibility of adding another game to be part of the semifinal rotation for the new college football playoff.
The postseason plan approved by university presidents in June called for the national semifinals to rotate through six bowl sites. The years those sites do not host semifinals, they would be marquee bowl games, involving other highly ranked teams.
There are numerous details still be worked before the format is implemented in 2014, including the composition of the selection committee that will pick the playoff participants, site of the first championship game and revenue distribution.
And now it seems like the plan might be tweaked to give teams that don’t make the playoff more chances to play in high-revenue games.
“They created a playoff and they had a working concept for access, but they knew that more conversations were needed,” BCS executive director Bill Hancock said Wednesday after the second day of meetings in Rosemont, Ill. “There was discussion about access and whether another game might be necessary. There was. … but how it comes out, we don’t know.”
Also to be determined is what the format will be called.
“The first championship game is 28 months away. And so the highest priorities are going to have to go to the television contract and site selection,” Hancock said, adding that ESPN has a one-month exclusive negotiating window beginning around Oct. 1.
“And we would like to have the television part of it finished this fall. And we’d like to be pretty far down the road on site selection this fall. Although I don’t think we’ll be finished on site selection, possibly not until April,” Hancock said.
CWU HOME IN SEATTLE
Central Washington University says thick smoke from wildfires has prompted it to move Saturday’s home football game against Azusa Pacific University from the CWU campus in Ellensburg to a stadium in Bothell.
Central’s athletic department said the game will be played at Pop Keeney Stadium – a 4,500-seat stadium with artificial turf that’s home to several area high school football teams. It’s about 115 miles northwest of Ellensburg.
CWU athletics director Jack Bishop said his school made the move because air quality in the Kittitas Valley is projected to be in the “hazardous range.”
TCU LOSES TOP RUSHER
TCU leading rusher Waymon James will miss the rest of the season for the 17th-ranked Horned Frogs because of a left knee injury.
School spokesman Mark Cohen said James sustained a season-ending injury. The school didn’t release further details.
Jones appeared to get hurt in the fourth quarter Saturday of Big 12 Conference newcomer TCU’s 20-6 win at Kansas. He clutched his knee after making a cut on a run.
James had 168 yards rushing and a touchdown this season for TCU (2-0), averaging 9.9 yards on 17 carries. The junior, who also led the Frogs in rushing last season with 875 yards, could be eligible for a medical redshirt.
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.