The 2025 College Football Playoff was not kind to the two participating Group of 5 programs.

No. 12 seed James Madison, the Sun Belt champion, and No. 11 seed Tulane out of the American Athletic Conference both were humbled early and often in their first-round matchups Saturday.

Playing against No. 6 seed Ole Miss, Tulane trailed 17–3 at halftime but lost steam in the second half and was outscored by 17 points the rest of the way in a 41–10 blowout. James Madison fought hard against No. 5 seed Oregon but had no answers for the Ducks’ high-flying offense in a 51–34 loss.

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Both programs entered the College Football Playoff with automatic bids as two of the five highest-ranked conference champions. James Madison grabbed the final spot after five-loss Duke beat Virginia in the ACC championship game to knock the Cavaliers out of CFP contention, and Tulane got in by defeating North Texas 34–21 in the American title game.

But after a lackluster showing on the opening weekend of the College Football Playoff, questions began to arise if Group of 5 programs should be included in the 12-team bracket. These teams did put together fantastic seasons, but Notre Dame—the highest-ranked team to be left out of the CFP—and 12th-ranked BYU probably would’ve made for better first-round matchups.

Tulane coach Jon Sumrall, who will be joining the SEC at Florida next season, stuck up for the Group of 5 programs after the Green Wave’s loss on Saturday.

"There should be access for at least one G-5 team moving forward," Sumrall said. "I do understand the gripe. By how we played tonight, we maybe didn't help the critics of that. I do think there should be at least one G-5 representative."

Plenty of other figures around college football, from current coaches and analysts to former players, weighed in during the action Saturday.

Former Ole Miss coach and current LSU boss Lane Kiffin had one word to say during the first half of Oregon’s rout over James Madison.

Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt called for college football to fix its playoff format.

Former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer didn’t say anything himself, but he did repost this take from ex-Buckeyes star running back Beanie Wells.

Robert Griffin III, the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner, defended Group of 5 programs from criticism.

College football insider Brett McMurphy had seen enough in the first half of the JMU game.

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer doesn’t expect to see a March Madness-like Cinderella run from any Group of 5 team in the CFP.

Former NFL quarterback and Auburn star Jason Campbell wanted to see Notre Dame or an SEC program face Ole Miss and Oregon.

Although it hasn’t happened yet in the two years of the 12-team bracket, shocking upsets do indeed happen all across college football. Just last year, the eventual national runner-up Notre Dame lost to a Northern Illinois team that ended the 2024 season with five losses.

There’s no perfect answer to the debate. But the 12-team bracket is likely expanding in the coming years anyway, leaving plenty of room for all programs who deserve a shot at the national title.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as College Football World Had a Lot to Say As Tulane, James Madison Got Demolished in CFP.

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