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What is the holdup for the expansion of the CFP?
The College Football Playoff expansion and what is holding back a final decision was the topic of Wednesday's in-person meeting. There is a minute
6:59 PM
College Football Playoff staff members had a hotel room reserved for a potentially historic news conference to announce the expansion of the playoffs on Wednesday morning.
It was disassembled by early afternoon.
Bob Bowlsby thought there was a chance that we'd get to the end. There were good reasons why we didn't.
The board of managers of the CFP were unable to agree on an expanded format and will meet again in January at the national championship game in Indianapolis. The group's sixth in-person gathering was held on Wednesday, and it was one of two meetings in Chicago and one in Texas.
The 11 presidents and chancellors who make up the management committee of the CFP will meet again in Indianapolis.
Greg Sankey said he was prepared to head a direction. Others are not. We have to make decisions. I came here to make a decision, but I understand the need to do more work, so I'll respect my colleagues in that regard.
Jack Swarbrick, who is on the board of managers along with the 10 FBS commissioners, didn't attend the meeting because he stayed in South Bend, Indiana, to continue his search for a new coach.
The executive director of the CFP has said that a decision needs to be made by January if the playoffs are to expand in time for the 2024 season. The current contract requires unanimous agreement from all 11 members of the board of managers, along with the bowls and the CFP, to change the format.
If the playoffs don't expand until 2026, the commissioners have a blank slate and a new contract to work with.
Thompson said it was a white board.
If Sankey didn't agree to it, it wouldn't happen, and even without a unanimous vote, enough of the 10 conferences would have to agree on it. When Texas and Oklahoma join the 16-team super conference in July of 2025, there will be a playoff that does not include his league.
If the Commissioners can't come to a consensus within the current contract, it could get easier in the next one for a majority of them to force the hand of others.
Many in the room have grown weary of the discussions, but they also feel that progress continues to be made. The issue of automatic qualification and the entire format are sticking points.
Craig Thompson said that the eight option is still alive.
Sankey said he would let Craig speak for himself. A group of people brought forward a recommendation of six conference champions and six best remaining teams. I can stay at four.
The group tried to address concerns about what a larger field could do to the sport by discussing the potential expansion impacts from a global perspective. They pondered everything from potentially increased roster sizes to starting the season earlier to allow for two byes, but then wondered how that would affect the summer. The players will have a break after their conference championship games, so it's possible to start the playoffs later in December. The health and safety of the athletes is still an issue, but it's more important to figure out what the field will look like and how it should be determined.
One source in the room said format was the biggest thing right now.
Concerns still linger about how the New Year's Six bowls, particularly the Rose Bowl, would be impacted, but another issue at the heart of the debate remains pushback for a model that includes automatic bids for the Power Five conference champions plus one more champion.
Thompson said there's probably a difference of opinion between the two groups.
Both Thompson and Sankey pointed out that since the 12-team proposal was unveiled in June, the Pac-12 has hired a new commissioner and the ACC has hired a new commissioner.
Sankey said that some who suggested we need to move and move early are not there at this point.
Bowlsby said he wished the group had finished.
He said that college football fans view the issues differently depending on who they support, where they live and what conference they're affiliated with. The discussions we're having in the room are being held somewhere else. It was a hard day. We came away from it with a feeling that we made enough progress to keep moving forward and that the expansion of the playoffs is very near a consensus. There are details to work out, we believe it should get larger.
Bowlsby said that good will in the room gave him confidence that the details will be worked out.
