Committee to Present Report Next Week on College Football Playoff Size
As we’ve known for a few weeks, the College Football Playoff could be getting a tweak sooner rather than later. In mid-April, a committee met to discuss the possibility of College Football Playoff expansion options of anywhere from six to 16 teams.
And now a new report from ESPN says that a subcommittee is expected to “present a report” next week examining the strengths and weakness of the four-team playoff, including models for expansion, to the full group of FBS commissioners who comprise the CFP’s management committee.
CFP executive director Bill Hancock said, “It’s the regularly scheduled June meeting of the management committee. They will review the working group’s recommendation about a potential new format. … These meetings are a step in a process that will continue at least until this fall.”
Hancock added that the earliest any changes would come would be the 2023 season.
The in-person conversations June 17-18 in Chicago are the result of two years of exploring possibilities that could alter the format in the future, and will be the most in-depth discussions the entire group has had on the topic since the BCS ended.
Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby has been involved with preparing the recommendations and recently told The Paul Finebaum Show, “We are at the point now where we’re prepared to make a recommendation on format. Ultimately, the board will make a decision as to whether or not we move forward to take the next steps on what we’re recommending, but the fact is we manage by unanimous consent. There are 11 parties to the contract and then there are a whole bunch of others that are TV partners and bowl partners, and others that have a dog in the fight. We really need to get to some position of practical unanimity and that’s not easy to accomplish. So to say that change is imminent would not be accurate, but I think we have a suggestion and a recommendation, and we’ll see what comes of it.”
The College Football Playoff has completed seven years of of a 12-year contract and to change the contract before it expires would require all parties involved to unanimously agree to the change.
