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AP Top 25 Podcast: Road to playoff expansion; What's next?

FILE - Alabama's Ronnie Harrison (15) breaks up a pass intended for Clemson's Artavis Scott during the second half of the NCAA college football playoff championship game in Glendale, Ariz., in this Monday, Jan. 11, 2016, file photo. The College Football Playoff would expand from four to 12 teams, with six spots reserved for the highest ranked conference champions, under a proposal that will be considered next week by the league commissioners who manage the postseason system, a person familiar with announcement told The Associated Press on Thursday, June 10, 2021. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the CFP has not yet released details. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File) (Ross D. Franklin, Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

There is a plan in place to expand the College Football Playoff from four teams to 12.

It is a remarkable change for a sport that for decades seemed committed to using any other way possible to determine a national champion than a playoff.

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How did college football get here?

On the latest AP Top 25 College Football Podcast, Ivan Maisel, formerly of ESPN and about to become the lead writer of a new college football website called on3.com, joins the AP’s Ralph D. Russo.

They look back at the events that led to college football embracing a playoff structure and how it has gone so quickly from two teams to four to 12.

Plus what questions remain to be answered about this new plan, including how soon can it be implemented.

Maisel also talks about his new book, “I Keep Trying to Catch His Eye,” about his late son, Max.

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Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://APpodcasts.com

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More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25