Monday made official what had long been rumored: We’re moving to a 24-team College Football Playoff starting in the 2027-2028 season.
The reaction of most fans, commentators, analysts and many coaches and sports stakeholders can be summed up in one word: why?
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As recently as 2023, the playoffs had four teams. The smaller field ensured that the best of the best would compete for a title. Only losing or undefeated teams had a chance at playoff glory…well, unless you were an undefeated Florida State team.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYBACKS EXPAND TO 24 TEAMS IN 2027, WITH MORE GAMES COMING ON CAMPUSES ACROSS THE COUNTRY
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey speaks during a panel discussion on college sports in the East Room of the White House on March 6, 2026, as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick looks on. The Trump administration hosted the event titled “Saving College Sports” with leaders from the Power Four conferences, media officials and former coaches. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Then, in 2024, we moved to a 12-team format, which provided more opportunities for teams to change seasons. The 2024-25 Ohio State Buckeyes were a perfect example of this, losing the final game of the season before coming back to life and clawing their way to a championship.
The 12-team format has generally been very popular; This is a solid balance between maintaining tournament exclusivity, while adding more big playoff games on campus and most importantly preserving the bowl season and importance of the regular season. While the next version of the 2026-27 playoffs will only be the third under the expanded format, we’re already looking ahead to even more teams. Either way.
24 teams essentially means the end of meaningful bowl games. With the bowl field so diluted by the increase in playoff participants, the remaining bowls will pick up the scraps. Big conference championship games are about to become a thing of the past.
The regular season, long the best in sport, will be significantly less meaningful. Not only won’t three losses be enough to keep teams away, but there’s a good chance that four, or even potentially, five the losing teams (from the SEC) will participate in the 24-team playoffs. That might mean more games scheduled between the big programs, since they won’t worry about a single loss hurting their chances, but if it doesn’t, the sport will have almost entirely sacrificed the regular season.
Which, once again, begs the all-important question: who wanted this? Who asked for it? Why is this happening?
Big Ten Conference Commissioner Tony Petitti speaks during Big Ten Football Media Days 2025 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, July 22, 2025. (Louis Grasse/Getty Images)
The answer is money, money and money. The Big Ten led the charge to secure more playoff spots, and other conferences and groups eventually fell in line. The SEC, which had long resisted, relented, probably because Commissioner Greg Sankey realized he could start campaigning for all 16 conference teams to reach the playoffs each season.
Obviously, more playoff games mean more money coming from the broadcast partner, ESPN. More teams will play home games late in the season with a potential “playoff appearance” on the line. Then be able to sell expensive home playoff game tickets to their fans. Coaches now have a lower bar to claim a successful season. And boosters can see a return on their investment instead of having their money go toward reaching the Pop-Tarts Bowl.
The only group missing here? Fans. As per usual. The fans weren’t asking for it and polls showed that the vast majority of them didn’t want it. Not surprisingly, this happens anyway. And at a news conference announcing the change, executive director Rich Clark explained why: The playoff committee doesn’t care.
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Clark said on the call that the changes made by the 24-team field will be good for the sport and, more importantly, for business school leaders’ new favorite word: “stakeholders.”
“New scheduling standards will incentivize institutions to schedule more compelling non-conference games during the regular season, and 16 playoff games will now be played on campus, making postseason football accessible to more students and local fans,” Clark said. “Finally, through our commitment as CFP administration and staff, we will make the 24-team playoff spectacular for fans, for student-athletes, for institutions and for all of our stakeholders.”
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Clark answered a few questions, saying the committee will evaluate and encourage strong schedules, and that teams will be required to play 10 games against teams from Power 4 conferences. That’s all very good. But what followed was frustrating and a bit emblematic of how this whole process played out.
A reporter asked Clark about fans’ opinions, saying that “the online segment of the fan base seems to be perhaps against this”, and wondered how Clark thought this would be “received by the fans”. This is what he said:
“We are aware of fan sentiment and that many fans are not in favor of expansion,” Clark responded. “That certainly factored into the decision. It was taken into account. At the end of the day, we just have to have a spectacular playoff run. I mean, the CFP has a responsibility to our fans, they’re the lifeblood of college football. We owe it to them to make this great. That’s really our intention. We appreciate our fans. We took their feelings into account. That went into this decision. But we decided to move forward.”
Oh. Yes. We know the fans don’t want it, we didn’t care and we did it anyway because it made more money. Perfection.
Rich Clark, Executive Director of the College Football Playoff, speaks during the CFP Host Committee press conference at the Marriott Marquis Miami in Miami, Florida on January 20, 2026. (IMAGINE IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
This is obviously the real explanation for why they decided to “move forward” anyway. Fans are dead last when it comes to priorities among college football executives. A “spectacular playoff” doesn’t require 24 teams, in fact, it’s more likely to dilute them.
In 2025-2026, for example, several matches between P4 and G6 teams were widely criticized as being uncompetitive. Ole Miss knocked off Tulane 41-10 and Oregon took on James Madison 51-34. Even in the 2024-25 playoffs, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit went on a rant denouncing the Indiana Hoosiers for reaching the 12-team field when they lost 27-17. In a 24-team format, how bad will that 24th team be?
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Probably not great!
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But that’s what happens in modern college football; managers focus exclusively on short-term financial success rather than long-term health. The fans come last. Money comes first. At least this time they admit it.
Gn sports
