College Football Playoff selection committee member Randall McDaniel will step away from his role on the committee this fall for personal reasons, but will return next year, the CFP announced on Monday.
McDaniel's seat will not be filled given the timing of the season, but it's not unusual for the committee to operate below the normal 13-members. This will be the fourth time in 12 years that it has happened.
McDaniel was an All-American guard and four-year starter (1984-1987) at Arizona State, where he helped the Sun Devils win the 1986 Rose Bowl in the program's first-ever appearance. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008.
The committee is tasked with ranking the top 25 teams in the country and then assigning them into the 12-team bracket. It will release its first of six rankings on Nov. 4 and announce the final field on Selection Day, Dec. 7.