The new 12-team College Football Playoff will be a different experience for many teams that have never been part of the four-team version. With the possibility of multiple postseason games, there will be more planning, travel, and activity involved.
For teams in the Championship Subdivision, this is something they are used to.
Travel, fatigue, and playing against unfamiliar opponents create busy weeks of preparation, and long travel times—sometimes crossing three time zones—can take away from the time needed to get ready to play.
“We have cut back. This is week 14 for us – 12 games, one playoff, and one open week,” said UT Martin coach Jason Simpson, whose team won 41-10 at 16th-seeded New Hampshire on Saturday. The Skyhawks will travel on Friday to Bozeman to play top-seeded Montana State the next day.
“It’s hard. These aren’t professional players,” Simpson said.
While the College Football Playoff may feel like a new concept for major college football, teams in the FCS have been dealing with this for the past 46 years, since Division I split. Like the CFP, the FCS playoffs started with just four teams in 1978, but expanded to eight in 1981 and to 12 teams in 1982, with the top four teams receiving byes.
Since 2013, 24 teams have competed in the FCS playoffs (except during the pandemic), with 16 teams seeded and eight teams getting a bye week before the competition begins.
Simpson’s team is appearing in the playoffs for only the third time. Playing on the road against the top seed, which is making its 14th appearance, comes with both advantages and challenges, according to Simpson.
“Our kids are excited,” Simpson said. “One of the things I use at practice every day is, ‘Is this practice good enough to beat the Montana States or North Dakota States of the world?’”
“Well, guess what? You get to find out on Saturday,” he added. “The scoreboard will tell you.”
This Saturday’s schedule also includes Montana, which is making its 28th playoff appearance, playing at South Dakota State, which beat the Grizzlies 23-3 in last year’s national championship game.
Taking things easier during practice is almost necessary, said Grizzlies coach Bobby Hauck.
“These seasons are getting longer and longer,” he said. “We’re starting earlier and earlier, recruiting is getting crammed into the summer more and more, and then you jump into the season and you’re looking at how many games.”
“It used to be that you played an 11-game schedule and that was it,” Hauck added, mentioning that the season can extend another month if a team keeps winning in the playoffs.
Montana has won national championships in 1995 and 2001 and will head to Brookings, South Dakota, as the 14th seed to face the third-seeded and two-time defending national champions.
“There’s a lot of pressure,” Hauck said, referring to the program’s history. “However, that’s good pressure. You don’t want to be in a place where that’s not a realistic goal.”
Villanova is another team that has a long trip ahead. The 11th-seeded Wildcats are traveling to San Antonio to play the sixth-seeded Incarnate Word.
Coach Mark Ferrante said practices may be shorter this week to help ease the fatigue from a long season, and he believes the loud, hostile environment will actually be beneficial for the Wildcats.
“I think sometimes our guys like playing away, especially if it’s a crowded stadium because there’s just a little more excitement in the air whether they’re cheering for you or against you,” Ferrante said.
Lehigh, coming off a 20-18 win at ninth-seeded Richmond, will travel to Idaho to play the eighth-seeded Vandals. Coach Kevin Cahill said practices will be less physical this week. The NCAA-provided charter plane will be a helpful perk, and Cahill is just happy to have another game to play.
“To play this time of year, you’re okay with it. You figure it out,” Cahill said.
