‘Worst Thing for the Sport,’ ‘College Football Was Fun While It Lasted’ — Outrage Erupts Over CFP’s Rumored Expansion to 24 Teams
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The College Football Playoff has come a long way since its 4-team debut in 2014, expanding to 12 teams in 2024. Now, the Big Ten’s push for an even larger field is gaining serious momentum, with discussions continuing throughout the summer and into the fall.
On Wednesday, CFP leaders took another significant step toward a potential 24-team field, which naturally prompted strong reactions from fans. No final decision to expand has been made.
College Football Fans Rip Potential 24-Team Playoff as CFP Talks Advance
Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported Wednesday that CFP officials have moved significantly closer to expanding the playoff to 24 teams. The discussions reportedly include the potential elimination of conference championship games and the financial and contractual issues that would accompany such a change.
CFP executive director Rich Clark also provided insight into how the postseason could be structured under the proposed format.
He said the eight first-round games would ideally begin one week after the conclusion of the regular season, leaving an open week during the period currently occupied by conference championship games.
The eight second-round matchups would then most likely take place on the campus of the higher-seeded team during the third week of December. However, the potential changes have already sparked significant criticism on social media.
“This is the worst thing for the sport. Horrible to not listen to any of the fans,” one X user wrote.
“College football was fun while it lasted,” NoleGameday founder Logan B. Robinson chimed in.
“I used to love college football…ESPN Gameday, history and tradition, season-altering upsets, every game being critical, epic recruiting battles…all of this is now being flushed down the toilet just to make a few more bucks. It’s actually sad. Greed devours,” ATL Football Talk tweeted.
“Here comes ESPN to ruin college sports even more,” a fourth fan wrote.
Supporters of an expanded CFP could argue that a 24-team field would give more programs meaningful games late in the season.
They could also point to the potential for the format to make positioning in the rankings more important and create opportunities for additional conferences to earn playoff berths.
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Scheduling also presents complications involving the traditional Army-Navy window and the existing bowl calendar. The expanded postseason could also create complications involving the bowl schedule.
On3/Rivals analyst Josh Pate conducted a poll asking fans about the potential 24-team CFP format. Of 20,317 votes, 84% opposed the proposed expansion.
“CFB ‘leaders’ trying to sucker America into thinking CFP expansion is a hard prerequisite to scheduling better when they already control A.) the scheduling mechanisms and B.) CFP selection criteria is predictably pathetic,” Pate wrote in another tweet.
“When losing a regular-season game no longer feels like getting shot through the heart, we’ve lost the essence of what makes college football the best sport in the world,” a Michigan fan argued.
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“Can’t tell you how much I hate this,” former NFL quarterback Chase Daniel tweeted.
“Nobody in charge cares about the fans, players and tradition. It’s all a bunch of corporate shills in suits trying to get a TV paycheck,” Joey Knish wrote.
The CFP’s 30-day negotiating window with ESPN expires October 9. The CFP says its next steps will be determined after evaluating the outcomes of those discussions.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.
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