Nick Saban Urges College Football Playoff to Rethink How It Judges Wins and Losses
Hall of Fame coach Nick Saban said Saturday that the College Football Playoff needs a better way to weigh the quality of wins and losses rather than simply counting them. Saban argued the current system rewards win totals over strength of schedule, pointing to Texas' season-opening loss at Ohio State last year as an example of a defeat that should count differently than a loss to a far weaker opponent.
Saban's comments come as the 12-team playoff enters its third season, an expansion from the previous four-team format meant to include more programs. The change has not quieted complaints about the selection committee. Last year's final rankings drew backlash after the panel left out programs like Notre Dame, Texas and BYU that had held playoff positions the week before. The CFP has confirmed its ranking schedule, including weekly reveals late in the season, will stay the same for 2026 despite ongoing criticism that the process invites the committee to justify earlier calls rather than judge full bodies of work.
What supporters say:
Backers say a quality-adjusted metric would reward teams for playing tough non-conference schedules instead of padding records against weak opponents, addressing a long-standing scheduling complaint.
Coaches like Saban argue the current format lets narrow, undefeated records overshadow more meaningful losses, muddying who actually belongs in a 12-team field.
What critics say:
Skeptics say any quality-of-loss formula would still rely on subjective committee judgment, the same complaint that already dogs the current rankings.
Others argue the 12-team expansion was supposed to reduce the stakes of any single loss, and adding a new evaluation metric could reintroduce the kind of controversy the bigger bracket was designed to avoid.
What's your take?
Should the College Football Playoff change how it evaluates the quality of wins and losses, as Saban is urging? Yes 
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