Photo via Yahoo Sports

With move to 24-team Playoff, college football would fundamentally change forever

College football is on the brink of a seismic shift with the impending expansion of the College Football Playoff to a 24-team format, a move that will reshape the sport’s postseason landscape. The deal, nearing finalization with ESPN, will eliminate conference championship games—a major concession that reflects the financial priorities driving the change.

The loss of standalone events like the SEC Championship Game underscores the trade-offs, as leagues seek to recoup revenue from the new structure. To qualify for the expanded playoff, Power 4 schools will now need to play at least 10 games against other Power 4 opponents, a rule supported by SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey and Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti.

This requirement aims to strengthen nonconference matchups, though details on scheduling remain under negotiation. The first two rounds of the playoff will shift to campus sites, with seeds 9–24 competing in the opening round and seeds 1–8 hosting the second, potentially altering the traditional postseason calendar—including the timing of the Army-Navy Game.

Up nextCollege Football· 1h ago

Five storylines for Gophers fans to watch during Minnesota's bye week