The College Football Playoff committee has swiftly moved to name a new chair for the rest of the 2025 college football season following the resignation of Mack Rhoades. 

Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek will serve as the chairman of the College Football Playoff committee for the remainder of the year, the CFP announced on Thursday. Yurachek is in his second season as a member of the CFP committee, beginning his three-year term in February 2024. 

To replace Rhoades, Utah athletic director Mark Harlan will rejoin the committee after previously serving a one-year term in 2023.

The CFP committee’s moves to elevate Yurachek and add Harlan came on the same day that Rhoades took a leave of absence for personal reasons amid a university investigation.

“We are deeply appreciative of Mack Rhoades’ leadership and service as Chair of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee this season,” College Football Playoff executive director Rich Clark said in a statement. “Mack has informed us of his decision to step down for personal reasons, and our thoughts are with him and his family during this time.

“We are pleased to announce that Hunter Yurachek will assume the role of Selection Committee Chair, effective immediately. Hunter’s experience, integrity, and commitment to the game make him exceptionally well-suited to lead the committee as it continues its important work throughout the remainder of the season.”

New head coach John Calipari of the Arkansas Razorbacks poses with Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)

Baylor is investigating allegations made against Rhoades. While not going into additional details, Baylor vice president Jason Cook said Thursday that those allegations against Rhoades do not involve Title IX, student-athlete welfare or NCAA rules violations, and do not involve the football program. 

Rhoades was the chair of the committee for the first two CFP rankings of the 2025 season, explaining the committee’s process to reporters following both reveals. 

Yuracheck is in his eighth full year at Arkansas. He previously worked as the athletic director at Coastal Carolina (2010-15) and Houston (2015-17). 

On top of becoming the new CFP committee chair, Yurachek and Arkansas are also in the midst of a head coaching search for its football program. Arkansas fired head coach Sam Pittman in September as the Razorbacks are 2-7 this season.

Harlan, meanwhile, has been Utah’s athletic director since 2018. He has overseen plenty of success across multiple sports since taking over as Utah’s athletic director, with the Utes winning five national championships and 32 conference titles under Harlan’s watch. 

Unlike Yurachek’s Arkansas football program, Harlan’s Utah team is in the CFP hunt this season. The Utes are 7-2 and ranked 13th in the latest CFP poll, making them one of the top at-large teams on the bubble. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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