Power Four conference commissioners have reached an impasse in the College Football Playoff expansion discussion. There doesn’t seem to be a happy medium for one of sport’s hottest topics now that all figureheads from the Big Ten, SEC, ACC and Big 12 have defended their respective proposals during conference media days.
The only component unanimously agreed upon was the need for a straight-seeding model. Those were adopted in May and will begin during the 2025 season.
As the debate turns to 2026 and beyond, will the playoff bracket remain at 12 teams, or expand to 14 or 16? And how will those teams be determined?
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said last week his league is open to various playoff expansion formats, including 5+7, 5+9 or 5+11. The number five refers to automatic bids for conference champions, including one from the Group of Six. The second number represents the number of at-large selections.
On Tuesday, Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti pushed back on the idea of five automatic bids, saying his conference continues to support the 4-4-2-2-1 format. Under that model, the Big Ten and SEC would receive four guaranteed spots each, while the ACC and Big 12 would have two apiece. The Group of Six would be guaranteed one representative, with three at-large spots remaining.
“I’ve heard my colleagues around other leagues say that a lot of work has to be done to the selection committee and that’s where I have a hard time on what that actually means,” Petitti told Yahoo Sports. “In talking to some of the folks in our room, our ADs that have been on that (selection) committee, I’ve yet to hear someone say they need more data or stuff to look at. You can come up and make metrics, but ultimately it’s just people evaluating what’s put in…
Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/college-football-playoff-expansion-in-flux-where-each-power-four-commissioner-stands-as-talks-reach-impasse/
Author : Brad Crawford
Publish date : 2025-07-22 15:06:00
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