Expanded CFP could impact the Heisman Trophy ceremony

The potential, if not inevitable, expansion of the College Football Playoff will have consequences. One of those consequences could be the Heisman Trophy ceremony.

Ben Portnoy of Sports Business Journalexplores the dynamics arising from the possibility that more postseason games will undermine, if not eliminate, the traditional Saturday night event in December.

“I mean, it’s the Heisman Trophy," 2001 winner Eric Crouch told Portnoy. “It’s obviously one of the most sought after awards in all of sports. It’s very prestigious. It’s been held in a high regard and the standard’s been set high and none of us want to see that go away. . . .

"The fear is that the players will say, ‘Oh, I can’t make it. I’m just going to accept my award in the living room of my apartment.' We don’t want that."

The potential for involuntary change comes at a time when the Heisman ceremony is undergoing voluntary changes.

Heisman Trophy Trust CEO Jeff Price told Portnoy that the annual ceremony will expand to Friday night, with a Heisman Live event consisting of a fireside chat featuring the four finalists. On Saturday night, the award show will add a red-carpet show along with an effort to make it look and feel like the Oscars for college football.

“The idea of bringing the four finalists together and whether that’s in New York or in another location, is certainly something that we can work through,” Price told Portnoy. “But for 90 years, that visit to New York and the ability to bring the winners together has made the Heisman what it is today."

What it becomes depends on what the CFP will be. At the end of the day, the numbers will control the outcome. And the Heisman ceremony's numbers don't compare to the audience attracted by a high-stakes college football game.

Last year, the Heisman Trophy ceremony attracted 4.3 million viewers, the highest average audience since 2012. The eleven 2025 CFP games averaged 16.3 million viewers.

Bottom line? Postseason games are better for the bottom line than the ceremony that hands out the ultimate postseason award.