The CFP Era · 2014–present

Buffalo

Twelve seasons in three acts · Mid-American

70–73Record
49.0%Win %
0National titles
2020Peak season
32Avg. percentile
4NFL draftees

The three-act trajectory

Within-season power percentile against the FBS cohort, season by season.

FOUNDINGTRANSITIONEXPANSION0255075100141516171819202122232425Peak of the era2020 · 6–1Steepest fall2021
Source CFB Zeitgeist · power ratings
Founding2014–2020

The four-team Playoff era. The bracket is small, the margin for error none.

42–39 · avg percentile 38
Transition2021–2023

The last seasons before expansion — NIL arrives, the portal opens, the four-team format ends.

14–23 · avg percentile 16
Expansion2024–present

The twelve-team Playoff. A wider field changes what a season has to prove.

14–11 · avg percentile 34

Defining games

Coaches of the era

Alex Wood2014–2014
Lance Leipold2015–2017
Lance Leipold2020–2020
Maurice Linguist2021–2024
Pete Lembo2025–2025

Roster of the era

4 players drafted into the NFL across the CFP era.

114
116
120
125

Entering Year 13

The 2026 season opens the next chapter of the expansion era under Pete Lembo. See the 2014–2025 program page →