The CFP Era · 2014–present

Northwestern

Twelve seasons in three acts · Big Ten

74–74Record
50.0%Win %
0National titles
2017Peak season
51Avg. percentile
17NFL draftees

The three-act trajectory

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

FOUNDINGTRANSITIONEXPANSION0255075100141516171819202122232425Peak of the era2017 · 10–3Steepest fall2021
Source CFB Zeitgeist · power ratings
Founding2014–2020

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

51–35 · avg percentile 58
Transition2021–2023

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

12–25 · avg percentile 32
Expansion2024–present

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

11–14 · avg percentile 52

Defining games

Coaches of the era

Pat Fitzgerald2014–2017
Pat Fitzgerald2020–2022
David Braun2023–2025

Roster of the era

17 players drafted into the NFL across the CFP era.

214
215
216
117
118
320
422
225

Entering Year 13

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