There was a big buzz a few weeks ago about conferences scrapping college football divisions. The NCAA changed its rule, allowing it for leagues with twelve or more teams, and the reactions were swift. As of right now, though, most are hypothetical. Of the eight conferences which previously had divisions, only three will definitely forgo them, only two will forgo them this year, and one of those—Conference USA—was set to abandon the format anyway as it drops into odd-numbered membership.
Here’s where each league stands for this fall:
Big 12: No Divisions
The Big 12 hasn’t had divisions for a while now. The top two teams in the standings will meet for the conference championship, as has been tradition ever since the NCAA allowed this league and others of its size to have championship games. Status quo.
Pac-12: No Divisions
This is new. This is the big one. The Pac-12, not graced with strong-enough teams these days to make the conference championship an exercise in the better division’s champion whomping that of the weaker division en route to a Playoff slot, is pivoting to a divisionless structure like that of the Big 12. Effective immediately.
It also may be that this is about producing the most exciting game possible after some very quiet Pac-12 championships in recent years. If that’s the primary motivation, well, giving your conference champion the best victory possible in their “closing argument” isn’t a bad secondary prize.
ACC, Big Ten, SEC: Divisions, For Now
For this year, at least, all indications are that the other three Power Five leagues will continue to use divisions, with the winner of each advancing to each conference championship. There’s an argument to be made (we’ve made it a couple times) that divisions are the best things for conferences with lopsided ability geographically—it is better, on average, for a one-loss Big Ten East team’s playoff chances if they play a Big Ten West team rather than the second-best Big Ten East team—but Playoff appearances are not everything. Even if they’re a lot. Is it worth more money than the marginal Playoff-appearance probability is worth to have a better matchup in your title game? I’m not sure. Is it worth more money than the marginal Playoff-appearance probability is worth to have a more entertaining regular season schedule, unencumbered by the negative effects of divisions? Now we’re talking.
AAC: No Divisions
The American’s been down at eleven teams for a little while now, and so they will continue to have no divisions. Reporting (I think ESPN and The Athletic have done most of it, but let me know if you’re looking for credit and we can fight each other in an alley if I look it over and disagree) says that this will continue to be the case when they get up to 14 teams soon.
Conference USA: No Divisions
Conference USA won’t have divisions this year either, but that’s because of them dropping to eleven teams after being pillaged by the Sun Belt.
Sun Belt: Divisions
The Sun Belt had divisions even as a ten-team league. As it climbs to 14, those divisions are only growing larger. I do not know how they’re counteracting the element here where James Madison may not travel to San Marcos as often as the public wishes. Perhaps James Madison and Texas State are in the same division and I have inadvertently offended. Onto the MAC.
MAC: Divisions
The MAC, for all the laughs it generates, is pretty stable as a league. Credit to the MAC, or…no credit to the MAC? If you aren’t getting pillaged, is it because your teams stink?
Mountain West: No Divisions, But One Last Year of Divisions First
This is what made this a national story and not just a Pac-12 story. If this was just the Pac-12, we’d only be talking about the Pac-12, but then the Mountain West decided to not have divisions and we all got confused. Or at least, I got confused. I googled each of these conferences and the word “divisions” just now to try to figure out what’s going on. What is going on? Well, in the Mountain West, they’re going to have divisions for one more year. The Mountain West is not as desperate as the Pac-12. A difference of expectations, I guess.
