The 12-team format includes five spots for conference champions and seven at-large bids. With four power conferences left standing after the Pac-12 dissolved, a conference champion from the AAC, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West or Sun Belt will make the postseason.

There are a handful of teams who look to be a cut above the rest in those five conferences too. Here are the six teams we think have the best chance of representing the Group of Five in the first 12-team playoff.

After losing a close game to North Carolina for the second season in a row, App State stumbled last year. The Mountaineers were 3-4 before reeling off five straight wins to end the regular season.

This year, QB Joey Aguilar is back after throwing for over 3,700 yards and 33 TDs a season ago. Leading rusher Nate Noel transferred to Missouri, but Kanye Roberts is ready to be the full-time lead back. He averaged 5.7 yards a carry last season. The key to the offense will be a rebuilt offensive line that returns just one starter.

Four starters on the front seven are back for the defense, including linebacker Nate Johnson (7.5 sacks in 2023). Cornerback Ethan Johnson broke up 11 passes last season and may be the best defensive back in the Sun Belt.

A trip to Clemson looms in Week 2, but a win over Liberty at the end of September will be huge and James Madison is also on the schedule. The Sun Belt has improved dramatically over the past few seasons and its strength could boost the Mountaineers if they post an 11-1 season.

2023 was an odd year for Boise State. Thanks to a non-conference schedule that featured Washington, UCF and Memphis, the Broncos were 3-4 halfway through the season after a 31-30 loss to Colorado State. After that Boise State ended the season with four wins in its last five games to make the Mountain West title game. There, Boise State easily beat UNLV for its 15th conference title in school history.

Every starter from last year’s defense is back from a unit that showed serious improvement in November. That includes linebacker Andrew Simpson and defensive end Ahmed Hassanein. They combined for 33 tackles for loss a season ago.

The offense is boosted by the return of RB Ashton Jeanty (1,347 rushing yards, 19 total TDs) and the arrival of former five-star recruit Malachi Nelson. He’s the favorite to start at QB after Taylen Green's transfer to Arkansas.

A Week 2 game at Oregon means Boise State likely won’t go undefeated this year, but the Broncos have both Washington State and Oregon State at home. An 11-1 season and another Mountain West title would look really good to the selection committee given Boise State’s schedule strength.