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Important people from major conferences reportedly pushing for CFB Playoff expansion
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Every year, fans and media debate about the size of the College Football Playoff. Is four teams enough? Or should the field be expanded to include eight teams?
It’s been a topic of conversation since the College Football Playoff system was implemented prior to the start of the 2014 season. And every year, the discussion resurfaces.
As we head into the fifth year of existence — and after one of the more controversial selection processes in its brief history — there seems to be more smoke regarding expansion among the people that matter regarding the College Football Playoff. That is, powerful voices are starting to believe eight teams might be the way to go.
Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic recently published about the possibility of expansion. Big XII commissioner Bob Bowlsby and Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez appear to be leading the charge for potentially expanding the system.
The B1G has been left out in back-to-back seasons and the Big XII has also been omitted in past years. Over the five-year history, the only two conferences to earn a bid each season has been the SEC and ACC. Both conferences play eight-game conference schedules while the other three Power Five conferences have nine-game schedules.
Is expansion the answer to the College Football Playoff? It’s impossible to know. But there are some significant people who are looking to make potential changes to the system.
Those tweaks — and expansion — could be coming sooner rather than later.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB