Oregon HC Dan Lanning makes salient point when ripping CFP schedule

Under that schedule, the longest gap between the semifinals and the national championship would be 13 days, and the shortest would be exactly one week. But that would also mean sacrificing Christmas Day some years. With the NBA and NFL already claiming real estate on the holiday, the CFP could get swallowed up by professional leagues.

However, as Lanning noted, it's time college football claimed Saturdays for their own.

"We do a lot of favors for the NFL, Lanning said. "Saturday should be sacred for college football, and every Saturday in December should belong to college football."

While he aimed the NFL for encroaching on the sport's territory with Saturday games, the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 allows the NFL to air games on Saturdays beginning in the middle of December. College football leaders might need legislation revised to prevent the NFL from competing for viewers late in the year, but regardless, a schedule that ends the season on Jan. 1 would be far beneficial than dragging the season out into mid-January.

By then, the NFL playoffs have most of the attention, with the CFP being more of an afterthought. A condensed playoff schedule would also make logical sense for the transfer portal, which opens Jan. 2 in 2026.

If Lanning had his way, we'd be getting ready for a national championship game on Thursday, not the final three of this season's quarterfinals. The drawn-out playoff schedule doesn't seem to benefit anyone. College football has plenty of issues, but fixing the schedule should be at the top of the list.