FCS Playoff Expansion
The Football Championship Subdivision has proposed an expansion of the playoff system to 24 teams for 2013. The expanded field would allow the FCS to provide an automatic bid to all conferences that want one and that will now include the Pioneer League. As part of the expansion the FCS will seed the top eight teams in the playoff and give them first round byes and second round home games. It will not extend the time required for the playoffs, just increase the number of games played in the first round.
The proposal goes before the NCAA championships cabinet in June and will be reviewed for final approval by an executive committee on August 2. It is expected to pass and be in place for the 2013 playoffs.
As it stands, the expansion will add one more automatic qualifier in the Pioneer League and three more at-large bids. The Ivy League and the SWAC are expected to continue to not send their champions to the FCS playoffs. With the addition of at-large bids, the hope is that teams will schedule better non-conference games in order to boost their strength of schedule and have a better shot at getting those spots.
This is a logical extension of the FCS playoff system as the division continues to grow. There will be 124 teams participating in FCS football in 2012. The playoffs have been in place since 1978 and were last expanded in 2010 going to the 20 team format.
