Now I don’t have a strong opinion one way or the other on expanding or staying put, but I think I’m missing something regarding some of the criticism I see.

Would this not be the same format the FCS uses? I don’t think the regular season matters less to them because the byes are an actual advantage in their format. The playoff begins right after the regular season, so the bye can be very advantageous.

One thing I would like to see in this case is the bowls going away or being greatly reduced. Those sponsors could just sponsor early round games.

I could also be misunderstanding this thing completely, and it’s nothing like the FCS.

You seem to have the essence as far as I can tell 😆

Two other aspects:

1. The SEC had the market cornered for quite a few years at the height of all things Alabama. As we see all the time, for some reason, most people or organizations in power seem to be reluctant to give it up. Sankey has some hall of fame level quotes on not needing to “dumb down the SEC”, and that others “need to catch up”.

2. The previously entrenched bowl system created a fairly unique situation.

Interestingly enough, once the bowl system started to erode beyond repair, and the SEC went three years without a title…things started to move.

All imo of course!

Edited May 14May 14 by JabbaNoBargain

Thanks, Eric, I'm in your what's the damage with 24 corner.

Yes, if the NCAA and not a media company managed the FBS playoff, CFB would have been at 24 or more decades ago.

The D2, D3, and FCS POs play only the champ game at a neutral site. Under the Petitti/Big Ten proposal, the first two rounds of the PO would be played on campus.

Teams seeded No. 9 through No. 16 would host a 1st round game. The 1st round would be equivalent to CBB's play-in round. The top-seeded eight teams that receive a 1st-round bye would host a 2nd round game. The bye would be no longer than ten days.

The season would begin on what is now Week 0. There would be no conference champ games unless flex-scheduled into the regular season. All teams would have two off weeks during the season. The season would conclude two weeks earlier than under the current system.

It is estimated that a 24-team PO will bring in $600 million to over $1 billion additional dollars. ESPN would lose its PO broadcast monopoly with Fox, CBS, NBC, and others entering the bidding. Perhaps, we could then have a PO committee that, like the CBB committee, does its business in the light of day.

The additional money would help sustain a Power 4 instead of a super-conference that would 'disenfranchise' millions of college football fans.

A 24-team PO would neuter the subjectivity of the CFB PO committee. No team that deserved a spot in the field, Texas, BYU, Notre Dame, Utah, and UVA, USC, for example, would be left out.

When Tony first proposed a 24-team PO, among the guffaws directed in his direction was the laughter over his comment that a four-loss Big Ten team would be worthy of a PO spot.

Last season, 8-4 Iowa defeated a 10-2 Vanderbilt team. Two-loss Vandy was one of the SEC teams, besides the five in the field that Greg Sankey argued should be in the PO. Five teams in the field? How about no SEC team in the champ game in 2024 and 2025?

Tony responded to the 24-team pushback. The automatic qualifier criteria have been dropped. The Big Ten now proposes a format with 23 at-large teams, with a spot reserved for a G6 team if not ranked in the top 24.

Today, the Big Ten proposal has the support of the ACC, B12, and Notre Dame. The SEC is the lone holdout. Why? Because Sankey is carrying ESPN's PO broadcast monopoly water. ESPN wants no more than 16 teams in the field. Going to 24 will let other broadcast bidders in the door and also weaken ESPN's bowl season broadcast hegemony.

The natives are restless in Dixie. With the SEC going to nine conference games in anticipation of a 16-team field, which the Big Ten blocked, numerous SEC ADs and coaches support a 24-team field. Keep an eye on this month's SEC meetings in Florida.

The once vilified Tony Petitti played the long game. Tony is about to become the smartest guy in the room. Either you leverage the CFB postseason game inventory by expanding the field, sell the inventory via a private equity or private capital deal, or go to a Super Conference with many ACC and B12 teams left behind, and less money for the G6.

But what about tradition?

What, if any, college football tradition other than the games themselves is left? The NCAA lost its college football monopoly in the 1980s. It's been every team and conference for itself since, and the move to 24 is the next inevitable step.

As proposed by Tony Petitti, as early as next season, I believe the PO field will expand to at least 16 teams for two seasons to accommodate scheduling changes and then expand to 24.

This will not kill the regular season. Millions more CFB fans will have a dog in the PO postseason hunt.

Coach, it's always great to read your Forum takes.

https://clutchpoints.com/ncaa-football/ncaa-football-news-acc-commissioner-reveals-espn-preferred-playoff-expansion-plan

If all of the playoff games were home games, then the regular season games matter A TON. Not only are you gunning for a bye, but also for playing against the lowest seeds possible AND playing at home as many games as possible.

Edited May 14May 14 by Solar

"...playing at home as many games as possible"

Even if the home team has to share "playoff ticket revenue," there would still likely be other $$$ benefits such as concessions, parking, logo wearable sales, and potentially $$$ for local businesses like hotels and restaurants and food suppliers that would likely be untouched.

4 hours ago, HDuck said:

"...playing at home as many games as possible"

Even if the home team has to share "playoff ticket revenue," there would still likely be other $$$ benefits such as concessions, parking, logo wearable sales, and potentially $$$ for local businesses like hotels and restaurants and food suppliers that would likely be untouched.

Under the current 12-team PO, the home team has to provide 3500 seats for the visiting team, plus seats for a band if brought with, and that's it. The home team keeps all of the ticket and attendant revenue.

On 5/14/2026 at 8:52 AM, JabbaNoBargain said:

and that others “need to catch up”.

Hey Sankey, the catching up happened with NIL as the under the table SEC brown bag payoffs are now "all in" payments on top of the table and everyone has access to the buy-in. Just some have a bigger bankroll that others (as it always has been).