Expanded College Football Playoff: How Buckeyes can qualify

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- It's a new world of college football where fans are slowly becoming accustomed to the conference realignments and learning how the 12-team playoff format will work.

Week 1 gets underway on Thursday, and No. 2 Ohio State begins its season on Saturday against Akron at 3:30 p.m. Every FBS school will be chasing a spot in the newly expanded playoff, with smaller schools having a good shot and powerhouses having a little more room for error.

Here is what you need to know about all the changes ahead of the Ohio State football season.

Expanded conferences

The major conferences of college football have all expanded after the desolation of the Pac-12 last year. Ten of the West Coast schools in the Pac-12 moved to one of the major conferences, with the Big Ten welcoming four members.

Oregon, USC, UCLA, and Washington join the Big Ten to create the only 18-team conference in college football. The Southeastern Conference expanded as well, with Texas and Oklahoma joining.

The Red River rivals' former conference, the Big 12, welcomed Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and Arizona State, and California, Stanford, and SMU became members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Pac-12 has two remaining members, Oregon State and Washington State.

Because of the changes, we now have a Power Four group of conferences with a Group of Six underneath. With how much bigger the Power Four conferences got, each of them no longer has divisions, and the top-two regular season teams will meet in the conference title games.

That means for the first time, Ohio State could play Michigan in the Big Ten championship game.

How the 12-team playoff works

2024 is the first season with the 12-team College Football Playoff after one decade of the four-team format. Under the new format, rules are in place guaranteeing higher seeding for conference champions.

Of the 12 teams that will make the playoff, at least five will be conference champions. It is likely the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12, and ACC champions would occupy the top-four seeds, which automatically go to the four-best conference champions. The fifth-best conference champion is guaranteed a place too but not guaranteed the No. 5 seed.

It will go into the spot corresponding to their ranking or at No. 12 if it's outside the top 12. The remaining seven spots go to the next best teams in the final playoff poll, which will be released on Dec. 8.

In this example using the preseason Associated Press rankings, Boise State is the presumed fifth conference champion qualifier from the Mountain West. Because it's ranked outside the top 12, it would occupy the No. 12 seed. Of note, too, No. 10 Florida State (presumed ACC winner) would be the No. 3 seed, and No. 12 Utah (presumed Big 12 winner) would be the No. 4 seed.

In the first round, the higher seeds would host the lower seeds on Dec. 20 and 21. The quarterfinals will take place over New Year's with the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31 and the Peach, Rose, and Sugar bowls on Jan. 1. The bowl game sites will be determined based on the higher seeds' proximity to the bowl games.

Semifinals will be Jan. 9 at the Orange Bowl and Jan. 10 at the Cotton Bowl. The national title game will be on Jan. 20 in Atlanta at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

How the Buckeyes can qualify

In the example above, Ohio State is the presumed Big Ten champion as the No. 2 team. If this example came true, the Buckeyes would likely play the winner of Alabama-Penn State in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, and Georgia would likely play in the Peach Bowl, Florida State in the Sugar Bowl, and Utah in the Fiesta Bowl.

Although winning the Big Ten would guarantee the Buckeyes a quarterfinal spot, they can afford to lose a few games to still qualify as an at-large team. Unlike in previous years, the expectation is multiple 10-2 teams will receive a playoff spot.

So if Ohio State falls to two of Oregon, Penn State, or Michigan, all hope is not lost for the Buckeyes to make their first playoff since 2022. Three losses is likely where the line will be drawn.

Week 1 games that effect Ohio State's ranking

No. 14 Clemson vs. No. 1 Georgia: With Ohio State expected to beat Akron by a wide margin, they could enter Week 2 as the top-ranked team if Georgia falls to Clemson in Atlanta.

No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 20 Texas A&M: The Fighting Irish have little room for error if they want to get an at-large bid, and an impressive victory at Texas A&M could get them close to the Buckeyes in the next poll.

Idaho vs. No. 3 Oregon: The Buckeyes have dropped from their preseason AP ranking going into the Week 2 poll in the past two seasons. Part of that is due to teams ranked below them having more impressive opening wins. New Big Ten rival Oregon could the Buckeyes if they come out with a massive rout over Idaho.