It’s only a matter of time before the current 12-team College Football Playoff expands to include more invitations to the party. There was a groundswell of support to expand the model starting next year, but the team conferences that run the sport, the Big Ten and the SEC, couldn’t agree on a format, so the current model survived, for now (with some minor tweaks).
The sticking points have been the number of teams, automatic bids, and at-large spots, with the Big Ten favoring automatic qualifiers in a 24-team field, while the SEC is pushing for the top teams in the CFP rankings getting the nod in a 16-team format.
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The Big Ten is still preferring a 24-team field, but now appears to be pushing hard for a compromise, according to a report from ESPN, that would take into account the elimination of conference championship games, start with 16 teams, but eventually expand to 24. Furthermore, the Big Ten seems to be willing to drop the plethora of automatic bids for the conference in favor of the highest-ranked teams and the inclusion of one of the Group of Five teams once the field grows to 24, “no later than the 2029 season.” An expansion to 16 teams would initially have five automatic qualifiers.
More details, according to the report, involve the top two teams receiving byes, and the opening games — No. 16 vs. No. 13 and No. 14 vs. No. 15 — being played on the second weekend in December. The six second-round games would be on campus and four quarterfinals at traditional bowl locations on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. The semifinal games would be at traditional bowl sites, and the national title game would be played around mid-January.
In a 24-team format, the top eight teams would receive byes. Eight first-round games would be on campus, and then there would be an additional home game round with the eight second-round games played on campus. That would reward all of the top teams with a home game, something the top four seeds don’t get the benefit of today, meaning it would be additional gate revenue, likely welcomed by the masses.
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This is, of course, all subjecture at this point, and we’ll have to see if this internal memo sees the light of day and how the SEC receives it. Either way, this is how compromise is supposed to work, and it looks like the Big Ten is willing to concede the many automatic bids in exchange for a 24-team field.
In other words, more to come.
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Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X.
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This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Big Ten reportedly now pushing for 24-team College Football Playoff
