Transfer portal activity is all but done in college football and the House v. NCAA settlement is about to be passed. The college football calendar has passed two big checkpoints but another significant chapter of the offseason is about to arrive. College Football Playoff expansion has returned to the agenda for the leaders of college athletics.
We could see an expansion from 12 teams to 16 teams in 2026. Yahoo’s Ross Dellenger reports that there is momentum for the field to add four more participants.
The most notable part of this would include the SEC (four at-large bids) and Big Ten (four at-large bids) taking up half of the field. The ACC (two at-large bids), Big 12 (two at-large bids), and Group of Six (one at-large bid) would also have automatic access to the tournament. There would be three total at-large bids.
Commissioners Greg Sankey and Tony Petitti have gained negotiating power in the future of the College Football Playoff thanks to a previous agreement between all conferences that gave guaranteed access to power conference champions in the ACC and Big 12 and provided some protections for Notre Dame. That gives the two most wealthiest conferences all of the control. Sankey and Petitti would like to see some seeding change in 2025 before the next round of expansion arrives when the new television deal with ESPN begins.
This move could completely shake-up conference championships. Instead of just the top teams in the Big Ten and SEC playing, the leagues could host additional games with automatic bids on the line. The third-place team could host the sixth-place team and the fourth-place team could host the fifth-place team in a win-and-in situation similar to what happens in the NFL on the final week of the season.
At SEC Spring Meetings in Destin later this month, Commissioner Greg Sankey will likely try and get his member institutions to agree to playing a nine-game conference schedule in 2026. That will come with more revenue from ESPN and more postseason access.
More big change in college football is on the way.
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