Date of Army game could jeopardize Navy's CFP bowl eligibility
Navy is joining the American Athletic Conference this fall, but the timing of its annual rivalry game against Army could jeopardize its eligibility to participate in a New Year’s Six bowl game.
According to ESPN’s Brett McMurphy, the College Football Playoff management committee is concerned that Navy could be ranked high enough to earn a bid to a CFP-affiliated bowl, and then lose to Army the weekend after the final rankings are voted on.
If that were to happen, a possible Navy loss to Army would not factor in the Midshipmen’s final ranking. To change this, certain conference commissioners say the Army-Navy game should be moved up and played before the final rankings are unveiled.
“All games should be done by Selection Sunday (Sunday, Dec. 6, 2015) for those teams to be considered for a College Football Playoff bowl,” Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson told ESPN.
Per McMurphy, Thompson and Sun Belt commissioner Karl Benson believe that “any schools playing after the final rankings are released should be ineligible for a spot in the College Football Playoff or a New Year’s Six bowl.”
College Football Playoff executive director Bill Hancock says the date for the final rankings will not be changed.
“The rankings compiled by the committee on selection day will be the final version for purposes of identifying the teams in the playoff,” Hancock said.
In that circumstance, if Navy was the highest-ranked team from the Group of 5 when the final rankings were released, the Midshipmen would play in a New Year’s Six bowl regardless of the outcome of the Army-Navy game.
The issue will be discussed when the management committee (the 10 FBS conference commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick) meet in April.
Typically, the Army-Navy game is played a week after most conference championship games on the second Saturday in December, making it the only college game played that day. Next season’s contest is scheduled for a 3 p.m. start on Saturday, Dec. 12 in Philadelphia.
The history of the game makes it a bit of a delicate issue.
"Given the rich history of the Army-Navy game, its patriotic significance and pageantry, I can appreciate the desire of the academies to play on a stand-alone date with the eyes of the nation able to watch," Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby told ESPN. "However at this juncture, I'm not sure how best to address the impact of the game's outcome on the CFP given Navy's move into the American Athletic Conference, and the potential for it to secure a spot in the structure as a conference champion, or highly ranked non-champion.
“I will want to discuss this possibility and viable options with my FBS commissioner colleagues before formulating a recommended course.”
For one, Navy athletic director Chet Gladchuk is against moving the game.
“It needs to be a stand-alone game,” Gladchuk said. “That game has become a focal point for America. It’s just a wonderful event, an opportunity to showcase what America is all about. I’m hopeful [the committee] will find a solution and I’m confident they will.”
While it’s unlikely that the Midshipmen could potentially shake up the top of the rankings, the team could certainly enter the picture as the top-ranked team from the Group of 5 conferences.
Teams like Marshall, Memphis and Northern Illinois were in the picture in 2014 before Boise State emerged at No. 20 when the season ended to clinch a Fiesta Bowl berth. If the Midshipmen were to put together a Boise-like season and then lose to Army – a program that has had two winning seasons in the past 20 – it would not be a good look for the College Football Playoff.
- - - - - - -
Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
