The FBS oversight committee formally recommended on Thursday to move the official start of the college football season to what was previously known as Week 0. Teams would then have 14 weeks to play 12 games.
Under the proposal, FBS schedules would be standardized to 14 weeks beginning with the 2027 season. The season would begin on the Thursday of what is now designated Week 0 and end on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The recommendation is not yet an official change to the season. The Division I Cabinet will meet in June and decide on the proposal.
Teams have to apply for an exception to play during Week 0 under the current rules.
In a press release, the NCAA argued its proposed change would open up 2 bye weeks for teams instead of 1, maintain flexibility for any future postseason changes, and ensure standalone weekends for the Army-Navy game as well as conference championships.
Scheduling concerns have been a major sticking point for college football’s power brokers when discussing the College Football Playoff. Expanding the CFP in any way that would add additional rounds of games would lengthen an already elongated season, or put conference title games on the chopping block.
Oregon coach Dan Lanning said last postseason that an ideal schedule would see every team begin the season in Week 0 and have the national championship on Jan. 1.
The 2026-27 CFP championship game is set to be played on Jan. 25, 2027.
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Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
