South Carolina football: 12-team playoff will help the Gamecocks

South Carolina football could benefit from a 12-team CFP.

The College Football Playoff has been in existence since 2014, deciding the national champion in each of the last seven seasons. In that time, we’ve seen Alabama, Clemson, LSU, and Ohio State take home titles in the four-team event. While the playoff has been a nice upgrade from the BCS format, there are still some kinks to work out, particularly with the decision process. Should a team have to win its conference title to get in? What about Group of Five programs? There’s always someone on the outside looking in.

There’s been a recent push to expand the playoff so that all Power Five conferences, as well as G5 schools have an opportunity to join the party. Fans get tired of seeing the same teams face off against each other year in and year out. It seems a move to a 12-team playoff has gained the most traction.

Having a 12-team bracket allows for all conference champions to get in, finds a place for the best Group of Five or Independent program, and opens up spots for at-large bids, say, the SEC’s No. 2 or 3 team (the SEC had four teams in the final top 15 last season).

More opportunity is definitely a good thing for the Gamecocks. South Carolina has never won an SEC title, appearing in the championship game just once. Even when the program was winning 11 games a year, it missed out on the highly rated BCS bowls due to their conference affiliation. Clemson, for example, was going to the Orange Bowl year after year despite winning fewer games and getting drubbed by the Gamecocks in the season finale due to their ACC affiliation.

In 2013, South Carolina ended the season with a top 5 ranking, but was forced to play in the Gator Bowl. In a 12-team format, the Gamecocks would’ve been able to make some noise in the College Football Playoff with a roster that fielded Jadeveon Clowney, Mike Davis, Connor Shaw, Bruce Ellington, and Skai Moore. The ’11 and ’12 teams also finished the year ranked inside the top 10, and would’ve been certain CFP candidates in the 12-team format.

Right now, South Carolina is in a rebuild, with the playoff being the furthest thing from the mind of new head coach Shane Beamer. But if the Gamecocks can lay a solid foundation, and get back to being competitive in the SEC, an expanded playoff could offer an opportunity for the program to win its first national title.