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Report: Majority of commissioners open to expanding College Football Playoff format
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Talks of College Football Playoff expansion are heating up. This time, it appears the momentum is real.
Expansion has been a topic of conversation around the sport since the inception of the four-team format back in 2014. But as the product continues to grow stale and fans lose interest in seeing the same handful of teams participating every year, there’s a bigger push to include more teams in the national championship race.
Would it bump up to six teams? Eight? What about 12 or even 16? All of those options are still in consideration right now. But one thing has become clear, more and more individuals with the decision-making power to expand the format are on board with change.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Ross Dellenger, at least five commissioners in college football are in favor of expansion and three more are open to the idea of including more teams. That means eight of the 11 members of the CFP Management Committee are interested in exploring an expanded field.
The CFP Management Committee is made up of the 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick.
Viewership of the College Football Playoff, rankings shows and selection special have seen dips in ratings over the last few years, leading the decision-makers to think about potential changes. Adding more teams to the mix seems like a quick solution to the growing problem.
Though it’s been an ongoing debate for seven years now, it sounds as if expansion is inevitable. It’s just a matter of when.
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