INDIANAPOLIS – We are on the cusp of the college football playoff once again undergoing a drastic change in teams allowed into the postseason, and there are plenty of fans across the sport asking why it’s needed.
That question, along with plenty of others, is the catalyst of the most impactful kerfuffle we have seen in recent memory involving the college football universe.
But, the answer to said argument is pretty simple when you peel through the layers of talking points each conference commissioner will recite over the next few weeks.
Money.
This entire ordeal can be traced back to the infamous BCS formula, which captivated audiences with computer rankings that led to fans essentially yelling at computers at seasons end.
Fast forward to 2026, college football fans are vastly united in their stance that a jump from 12 to 24 teams is just not warranted during this current era of the sport. Sure, we are watching schools across the country make tough decisions about the ramifications that have come with increased spending within the sport.
Because schools are now spending a large amount of money on piecing together rosters, with college football being the main driving force in universities paying their athletic department bills, conference officials have decided that they will use the College Football Playoff as their own line of credit to help pay the bills that keep accumulating.
If you haven’t noticed over the past five years, we are now living in a professional sports model, within what was once described as amateur sports. The amount of money that is needed to keep up with rival schools has shot through the perceived roof, with some programs spending upwards of $50 million this season to compete for a CFP title.
The thinking behind the closed doors of universities mostly centers around the idea that if they are going to spend that amount of money for a roster, they need more assurances that they will also receive a spot in the postseason, or at least in some way justify this thinking.
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Now, when a team finishes the regular season with an 8-4 record, they’ll be able to hang a banner inside the football facility that reads ‘College Football Playoff First Round’, which they know is not the flex that it has been over the past two seasons.
Yes, remember that we are only two years into the already expanded playoff system, after starting at four teams.
Now, with a straight face, those in favor of expanding the playoff want you to think it’s anything other than a money grab, or justification, during an era in which schools are having to find different ways to raise capital.
On Thursday, after 34 days of negotiating, ESPN formally presented CFP committee members a formal offer of how much it is willing to spend for the extra games that would come from increasing the amount of teams by 12.
Yes, this move would also be the end of conference title weekend across college football, though I could see this move actually opening up an avenue for Group of Six leagues to continue putting on a show for fans, if they chose to.
According to sources, there was no vote taken on Thursday by members of the committee that are made up of conference commissioners and Notre Dame. And, there were some questions raised by those same committee members about whether they should take this to the open market, even though they essentially know how much other networks would be willing to offer.
“Constructive discussions with ESPN continued this week,” the CFP said in a statement. “We have enjoyed a strong partnership with ESPN since our inception and are appreciative of the productive dialogue we have had throughout the negotiating period and continuing over the last several days.
“We will provide additional updates on the matters of future format and media rights when appropriate.”
It’s simple: the regular season.
Three weeks ago, I watched Ohio State lose to Texas in what was a thrilling game in Austin, with the Longhorns providing themselves with some cushion in case they were to drop two games over the remainder of this season.
Last weekend, even though folks wanted to proclaim loudly that this game did not really mean much in terms of punishment pertaining to the regular season, Alabama and Georgia battled until the final seconds of what turned into a heavyweight fight in Tuscaloosa.
Sure, Alabama can afford another loss this season and still make the playoff. But, two losses? Nope, the Crimson Tide would most likely be on the outside looking in, while someone else from the SEC grabs their spot in the postseason.
What if Texas were to lose on Saturday to a Florida team that will be heading to Austin with consecutive losses? Well, we’d be having a serious conversation about Steve Sarkisian missing the CFP with a roster that costs more than $40 million this season.
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In the eyes of the conferences, and CFP committee, the allure of a postseason bid is the carrot that would dangle in front of them so that fans would look the other way at the nonsense this creates for the football played in September or October.
Sure, fans will continue to show up, but the sport will have officially lowered the stakes of the intense showdowns we witness on a weekly basis across the sport during a regular season.
The point is that in this new format, games that take place in September, or even early October, will feel more meaningless than ever. Showdowns this weekend, like Missouri versus Ole Miss or Notre Dame versus BYU, will be looked upon with a different eye by those attending or watching at home.
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Any team with a 9-3 record, or maybe even 8-4, who calls the SEC or Big Ten home will no longer feel the tension that comes with sitting at home to watch the CFP selection show in hopes of pulling off a miracle and being selected by the committee.
We have officially lost the plot to what made college football so great, with every dollar that this new deal creates for every conference that makes up the sport.
If they actually cared about what is best for college football, those in charge of helping the sport grow would have read the room and kept this playoff at 12 teams, or 16 at most.
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But, since everyone deserves an trophy to justify the amount of money they are spending to field a football team, we are now just waiting on CFP members to sign off on creating 12 more spots so everyone can feel like they accomplished something.
Hang that banner. I hope that 8-5 season made you feel better, and paid off when the check clears.
