College Football Playoff could move semifinal date

Your teams on the go or at home. Personalize SI with our new App. Install on iOS or Android.

The College Football Playoff is starting to look at moving the semifinals to a date other than New Year’s Eve, executive director Bill Hancock said during SEC media days Wednesday, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

The ratings for the 2016 playoff semifinals dropped by 36% from 2015, the first year of the four-team playoff system.

GET READY TO COMPETE

Pick your champion (you can change it later). We’ll email you when brackets open.

No purchase necessary. 50 U.S./D.C. 18+. Entry opens 3PM ET Dec 6, 2026 and closes 8PM ET Dec 18, 2026. Void where prohibited.See for complete details. The College Football Playoff (CFP) is not a sponsor or administrator of this contest.

Staging the games on New Year’s Eve drew criticism, as the date and time are not seen as conducive with a major sporting event.

Hancock said the hope is to move the game to a time when more fans can watch. The earliest the change would happen is 2018.

He also addressed the idea of the playoff expanding beyond four teams, saying the topic has not been discussed.

Add us as a preferred source on Google