Though I think the best way to meet my, and Delaney's, point is to have 8 teams in the playoffs.
So do a lot of athletic directors. The current playoff contract ends in 2025 and this Spring
eight national nonconference games were announced. All but one of them was scheduled after 2025.
These include Florida's announcement of a home-and-home with Colorado in 2028-29 and a home-and-home series with Texas in 2030-31.The Gators haven't gone outside the state for a nonconference regular-season game since 1991, and it has not played a home-and-home out of state since 1989.
It looks like the power five scheduling is now being done by administrators who finally have grown some balls.
Even if the risk of playing a tough schedule does not mean a playoff spot it is also a hedge against declining attendance at cupcake games. Right now average attendance at FBS games is 41,000, a 5000 per game drop in the past few years.
Among the most proactive schedulers are AD's at SEC Schools who only play an 8 game schedule. Auburn has a home-and-home with Penn State in 2021-22. LSU is playing Texas each of the next two seasons. Clemson (2025-26) and Oklahoma (2027-28) have also done home-and-homes with the Tigers. Notre Dame will come to Georgia on Sept. 21, returning the 2017 game in South Bend, Indiana.
And consider the future schedules of Georgia.
Between 2020-33, Georgia will play 13 nonconference games against Power Five opponents and Notre Dame. That's the equivalent of one full season of must-see nonconference games. The current slate includes home-and-homes against UCLA and Clemson (twice). The total doesn't include the annual rivalry game with Georgia Tech.The fact of the matter is schools without a power five team on their non conference schedules after 2025 are going to be hurting in SOS.