The 2023–24 College Football Playoff was a single-elimination bracket invitational tournament to determine the national champion of the 2023 college football season.
The playoff bracket's semifinal games were held at the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day, part of the season's slate of bowl games. The winners, the Michigan Wolverines and Washington Huskies faced off in the 2024 College Football Playoff National Championship on January 8 in Houston.[1][2]
This playoff was the last to use a four-team bracket, with the College Football Playoff set to expand to 12 teams in 2024.[3]
Bracket
| Semifinals | Championship | |||||||
| January 1 – Rose BowlRose Bowl, Pasadena | ||||||||
| 1 | Michigan (OT) | 27 | ||||||
| 4 | Alabama | 20 | January 8 – National ChampionshipNRG Stadium, Houston | |||||
| 1 | Michigan | 34 | ||||||
| January 1 – Sugar BowlCaesars Superdome, New Orleans | 2 | Washington | 13 | |||||
| 2 | Washington | 37 | ||||||
| 3 | Texas | 31 | ||||||
Selection
The exclusion of Atlantic Coast Conference champions Florida State, who were undefeated but missing quarterback Jordan Travis due to an injury, generated controversy and criticism as they were the first undefeated Power Five team left out of the playoff.[4] The Seminoles were ranked No. 5 in the final playoff rankings with Georgia finishing at No. 6 after falling from the top spot as a result of their SEC Championship loss to Alabama.[5]
Selection Committee
The members of the playoff's College Football Playoff Selection Committee were:
| Member[6] | Position | Conference affiliation[lower-alpha 1] |
|---|---|---|
| Chris Ault | Retired Nevada Wolf Pack athletic director and football coach | Mountain West |
| Mitch Barnhart | Kentucky athletic director | SEC |
| Boo Corrigan | NC State athletic director | ACC |
| Chet Gladchuck | U.S. Naval Academy athletic director | AAC |
| Jim Grobe | Retired football coach at Wake Forest, Baylor, and Ohio | — |
| Mark Harlan | Utah athletic director | Pac-12 |
| Warde Manuel | Michigan athletic director | Big Ten |
| David Sayler | Miami (Ohio) athletic director | MAC |
| Will Shields | Former NFL player and Nebraska All-American | — |
| Gene Taylor | Kansas State athletic director | Big 12 |
| Joe Taylor | Former Virginia Union head coach and current athletic director | CIAA |
| Rod West | Former Sugar Bowl president and current trustee at Notre Dame | — |
| Kelly Whiteside | Former college football reporter for Newsday, Sports Illustrated, and USA Today | — |
- ↑ Current or former, athletic department administration only, during committee term.
References
- ↑ Culpepper, Chuck (December 3, 2023). "Michigan, Washington, Texas, Alabama selected for College Football Playoff". Washington Post. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
- ↑ Vorel, Mike (December 3, 2023). "UW Huskies earn No. 2 seed, Sugar Bowl rematch with No. 3 Texas in College Football Playoff". Seattle Times. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
- ↑ "College Football Playoff to expand to 12 teams starting with the 2024 season | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved 2024-01-05.
- ↑ Levenson, Eric; Lev, Jacob (December 30, 2023). "Florida State, left out of the College Football Playoff despite undefeated record, gets crushed in historic win by Georgia". CNN. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
- ↑ Bowman, Emma (December 3, 2023). "Undefeated Florida State is left out of 4-team College Football Playoff". NPR. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
- ↑ "2023 College Football Playoff Selection Committee". College Football Playoff. 2023. Archived from the original on January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 9, 2024.