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Trent Dilfer will take over in his first season as UAB head coach in 2023, and he’s already got his sights set on a national title. The former NFL passer made a bold statement about the College Football Playoff this week while speaking at the INFLCR NIL Summit.
Dilfer believes that his new conference, the AAC, provides the easiest path to an expanded 12-team postseason. Fans and media have been quick to comment on those remarks on social media.
This will be Dilfer’s first collegiate job following his time as an NFL television analyst and a high school coach. This, coming after a 14-year professional career where he led the Ravens to a Super Bowl title in 2000.
At Lipscomb Academy in Nashville, the coach won a pair of state championships which pushed him to take the next step. Last November, he accepted the opening at UAB.
Now, as he preps for his first season on the sidelines in Birmingham, he looks to the future. More specifically, the 2024 campaign when the College Football Playoff field expands to 12 teams.
That new format will consist of the selection criteria below.
The 12-team format will feature, in order, the top four conference champions, followed by some combination of the top six at-large bids and two highest-ranked remaining conference champions. Teams will be ordered based on the College Football Playoff rankings.
This guarantees that at least one Group of Five team will make the field each year.
Dilfer believes that could make his job easier, saying the following about playing in the American Athletic Conference.
“I would argue our conference is probably the best chance to get to the College Football Playoff when it expands. It’s an automatic berth. You don’t have to beat Alabama to get there or Georgia.”
Fans have been quick to react on social media.
Some say he’s right, though they’re not sure if UAB will be the team that winds up winning the league anytime soon.
I mean he’s not wrong. SMU (for now), Memphis and Tulane are in your way of the CFP? Beautiful
— BIG TEN REX (@HoopsRex) June 28, 2023
A number of AAC fans took it as a shot, though, believing he’s insinuating that he’ll come right in and lead the Blazers to a championship.
Gotta love schools that have never played a single game in the AAC talking about winning it & going to the CFB playoff 😂
— Pony Exce$$ (@Mmarion8) June 28, 2023
This upcoming season will be UAB’s first in the AAC as they fill the void left by Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF. They’ll officially join the league on July 1, 2023.
With that being said, the Blazers won’t be considered a conference favorite, though they have been more than formidable since reviving the program back in 2017. Over the last six seasons, they’ve posted a respectable 50-26 overall record.
We’ll see if Dilfer’s College Football Playoff remark holds true in the coming years.