Why RCFR

QUALITY WINS MATTER.

THE QUESTION: Can college football rankings be better?

Resume College Football Ranking was created to provide a different way to evaluate teams — one based on what they have earned on the field.

Rather than trying to determine who is the “best” team or predict who would win tomorrow, RCFR asks a simpler question:

WHO HAS BUILT THE BEST RESUME?

The Case for RCFR

Why RCFR RCFR View
The Goal To influence the people shaping college football rankings to place greater value on quality wins and challenging schedules.
Origins Resume College Football Ranking (RCFR) was born from a simple question: Can college football rankings be better? The expansion to a 12-team playoff in 2024 was certainly an improvement over previous versions, but the continued use of a subjective committee to define the “best” teams has produced varying results — along with unintended consequences for how teams approach scheduling. So, with a passion for college football, familiarity with a spreadsheet, a little help from AI, and a desire to prioritize results on the field, RCFR was born. RCFR offers a different approach by answering a simpler question: Who has built the best resume?
Philosophy QUALITY WINS MATTER. RCFR rewards teams for quality wins and challenging schedules through an objective, transparent and reproducible methodology.
How It Works Each week begins with the AP/Coaches Consensus Top 25. Teams are then re-ranked using seven criteria: (1) Top 25 Wins, (2) Best Top 25 Win, (3) Top 25 Games, (4) Total Wins, (5) Total Losses, (6) Consensus Rank, and (7) Head-to-Head.
Why It Makes Sense Not all wins are equal. Teams that defeat stronger opponents and succeed against more challenging schedules build stronger resumes than teams with similar records against weaker competition. Rather than trying to determine who is “best” or predict who would win tomorrow, RCFR measures what teams have actually accomplished on the field. The focus is resume, not projection or perception.
The Incentive Show me the incentive and I will show you the outcome. A quantity-based system that rewards accumulating wins and avoiding losses has created an unintended consequence: encouraging teams to reduce scheduling risk. The result is weaker schedules and a diluted product. RCFR creates the opposite incentive by rewarding teams for playing and beating quality opponents.
The Business Case The answer is money, now what’s the question? College football is a major business undergoing monumental change, with a growing number of interested parties all looking for a slice of the pie. While the future of the sport may be uncertain, college football can focus on one thing it can control: scheduling. Creating an incentive for stronger schedules produces more quality matchups, more meaningful games and greater fan interest. A better product creates more opportunities for growth, and ultimately, more value for everyone involved.
The Fan College football's traditions and deep ties are what make the sport uniquely special and its fans so passionate. Yes, many of us long for the years of yesteryear, before the world went and got itself in a big darn hurry — when a college education was more than fair payment and college coaches were not the highest-paid employees in the state. But times they are a-changing, and in this ever-evolving landscape, the fan may not have representation at the table, but we do have the ultimate power. We decide what we support, what we watch and where we spend our hard-earned money. If the powers that be continue down a path of disagreement and dilution, eventually even the most avid fans' interest will wane. Fans deserve stronger schedules, weekly slates of entertaining and competitive games, more meaningful games for every team, and a playoff filled with the most deserving teams possible. A transparent, quality-based ranking system creates the right incentive to help deliver those things. Reward quality, encourage quality, and give fans more of what makes college football great. That's how the sport can continue to grow its interest and value — even in an ever-changing environment.

The RCFR Principle

1
PLAY BETTER TEAMS
→
2
BEAT BETTER TEAMS
→
3
BUILD A BETTER RESUME
REWARD QUALITY AND YOU ENCOURAGE QUALITY.
BETTER SCHEDULES → BETTER GAMES → BETTER PRODUCT → MORE VALUE
MORE QUALITY GAMES. MORE MEANINGFUL SATURDAYS. BETTER COLLEGE FOOTBALL.