The expected expansion of the College Football Playoff in 2027 has created a scheduling conundrum left to be decided: When to play the traditional Army-Navy Game.
The proposed 24-team CFP is expected to open with 16 teams competing in the first round. The winners advance to face the top eight teams, who earn byes into the second round.
But to get the bracket-style competition to completion by the middle of January, the plan is to start the playoff in the second week of December. That has traditionally been the exclusive window for the pageantry of the longstanding game between the two service academies.
With conference championship games expected to be eliminated to accommodate the expanded CFP, the first week of December would be the likely window for the Army-Navy Game.
According to Front Office Sports, moving the week of the Army-Navy Game is unlikely to happen until the CFP officially commits to its 24-team format, which is reportedly all but official. The annual game has been a topic of discussion amid CFP expansion.
“I view these conversations as a win for the academies and ‘America’s Game,'” Army athletic director Tom Theodorakis told Front Office Sports.
The game will be played one way or another, with the ideal goal of maintaining its exclusive window. CBS has a contract to televise the contest through the 2038 season.
In addition to the first week of December, Thanksgiving week has also been mentioned for the Army-Navy Game, although that week is not likely to be exclusive.
“If we can preserve Army-Navy while giving our cadet athletes the opportunity to be in the College Football Playoff, that’s the best of both worlds,” Theodorakis said.
