IRVING, Texas – The CFP Management Committee has appointed Dr. Bryan Maggard, athletics director at Louisiana; Gus Malzahn, former head coach at Arkansas State, Auburn and UCF; and Jeff Tedford, former head coach at Cal and Fresno State, to the CFP Selection Committee, it was announced today by Rich Clark, Executive Director of the CFP.

The new members will begin three-year terms starting this spring. They will replace Chris Ault, Jeff Long and David Sayler, whose terms have expired.

Clark also announced that the management committee has extended the term of University of Arkansas athletics director Hunter Yurachek as selection committee chair for a second year through the 2026 football season.

"The additions of Bryan Maggard, Gus Malzahn and Jeff Tedford will introduce strong, fresh perspectives to the selection committee as we enter our 13th season," Clark said. "Each brings a deep understanding of the game, a genuine passion for college football and a commitment to integrity and excellence. Their diverse backgrounds as university leaders, recent coaches and former student-athletes will complement our returning members and allow for a seamless transition."

"We are also pleased to have Hunter return as chair," Clark added. "He embraced the role last year and quickly established himself as an effective and respected leader for the committee."

"I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to return as chair of the selection committee, Yurachek said. "It was an honor to work alongside such a committed group last year, and I'm excited to continue building on that momentum this fall. Every member of this committee shares a deep passion for college football and a strong commitment to upholding the integrity and excellence of the playoff process."

About the new members:

Dr. Bryan Maggard is in his tenth year as Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics at the University of Louisiana, guiding one of the most successful eras in Ragin' Cajuns history, which has included 20 Sun Belt Conference titles and 23 trips to the NCAA postseason.

In addition to on-field success, Louisiana had its most successful fundraising year in 2021-22, raising more than $30 million. One of those gifts was $15 million from Our Lady of Lourdes to secure the stadium naming rights for the $65 million stadium renovation project, the largest gift in Department history. In 2024, Maggard was appointed to the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision Oversight Committee.

A native of Dexter, Kansas, Maggard spent 22 years at the University of Missouri, where he last served as Executive Associate Athletic Director and played a key role in the Tigers' transition into the Southeastern Conference. Maggard also served at both Florida State University and Kansas State University, overseeing the academic support services for the Seminole and Wildcat football programs, respectively.

Maggard received a bachelor's degree in journalism and a master's degree in health and physical education, both from Kansas State University. He received a Ph.D. in Educational and Counseling Psychology from the University of Missouri.

Gus Malzahn spent 35 years in the coaching ranks, known for his innovative offensive philosophy and consistent success at the highest levels of the sport. His resume includes a national championship, a second National Championship Game appearance, three conference championships and eight conference championship game appearances. He spent 13 years as a head coach at Arkansas State (2012), Auburn (2013-20), and UCF (2021-24), posting a career record of 105-62.

His Auburn teams reached the postseason in all eight of his seasons and won two SEC Western Division titles. In 2013, his first season as head coach at Auburn, he led a remarkable turnaround taking over a team that finished with three wins the season before and leading the program to a 12-2 record, the SEC championship, and a spot in the BCS National Championship Game.

Malzahn had a decorated career as an offensive coordinator with Arkansas, Tulsa, Auburn, and most recently Florida State. He earned the 2010 Broyles Award as the nation's best assistant coach while directing Cam Newton and an offense that powered Auburn to the school's first national championship since 1957.

Before entering collegiate coaching, Malzahn was a high school head coach in Arkansas for 14 seasons. His overall record of 144-36-1 included three state championships. Malzahn was inducted into the Arkansas High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2013 and is the only coach to earn 100 wins as an FBS head coach and as a high school head coach.

Malzahn earned his bachelor's degree in physical education from Henderson State in 1990. He began his collegiate career at Arkansas, playing wide receiver for the Razorbacks in 1984 and 1985 before transferring to Henderson State.

Jeff Tedford served as the head coach at the University of California from 2002-12 and Fresno State University from 2017-19 and 2022-23, compiling a career record of 127-79. At Cal, Tedford engineered one of the most remarkable turnarounds in college football history, leading a team that had just won one game to consistent bowl appearances, national rankings, and a share of the 2006 Pac-10 conference title. He remains the Golden Bears' all-time winningest coach, posting an 82-57 record, while guiding the team to eight bowl games, and earning Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors twice.

In 2017, Tedford returned to his alma mater as head coach of Fresno State, revitalizing a struggling program. Over two stints (2017-19 and 2022-24), he compiled a 45-22 record, captured two Mountain West titles, three Western Division titles, posted a 4-0 record in bowl games and had two Top 25 finishes. He coached Fresno State to three 10-win seasons, including their first 12-win season in 2018.

Tedford began his coaching career in 1989 with the Canadian Football League's (CFL) Calgary Stampeders before moving on to offensive coordinator roles at Fresno State and Oregon. He also had stints with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, BC Lions and University of Washington between his head coaching positions at Cal and Freson State.

A native of Downey, California, Tedford was a standout quarterback and played for two years at Cerritos College before finishing his collegiate career at Fresno State, where he established several school passing records and led the Bulldogs to a conference title his senior year. He then played six seasons in the CFL. Tedford received his bachelor's degree from Fresno State.

The CFP selection committee is responsible for ranking the 25 teams in the playoff and assigning the top 12 participants to the playoff bracket. Using a combination of game film, data analytics and conference input, the committee meets in-person beginning late in the football season and produces a ranking of the top 25 teams each week leading up to its final selections.

The composition of the committee is intended to balance technical football expertise, industry knowledge and independent judgement. With these three new members, the current committee consists of six sitting ADs, six at-large members (represented by four former head coaches and two former players) and one former media member. The other returning selection committee members are Troy Dannen (athletics director, University of Nebraska), Mark Dantonio (former head coach, University of Cincinnati and Michigan State), Mark Harlan (athletics director, University of Utah), Ivan Maisel (former sportswriter for The Atlanta Constitution, Sports Illustrated, the Dallas Morning News, Newsday, ESPN and On3), Chris Massaro (athletics director, Middle Tennessee State), Randall McDaniel (former All-American offensive lineman, Arizona State University), Mike Riley (former head coach, Oregon State University and the University Nebraska), Wesley Walls (former All-American tight end from Ole Miss), Carla Williams (athletics director, University of Virginia; and Hunter Yurachek (athletics director, University of Arkansas).

   
About the College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff (CFP) is the event that crowns the national champion in college football. Four CFP First-Round games are played on host campuses, followed by the CFP Quarterfinals and Semifinals, which rotate annually among six bowl games – the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential and the Allstate Sugar Bowl. The CFP National Championship will be on Monday, January 25, 2027, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. For additional information on the College Football Playoff, visit CollegeFootballPlayoff.com.