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SEC, Big Ten look to expand College Football Playoff to 14 or 16 teams: report

The SEC and Big Ten are expected to use their newfound power over college football to expand the playoff further, and secure automatic bids for themselves in the process.

James Parks

College football could expand the playoff again in 2026, as the SEC and Big Ten look to get more out of the format.
College football could expand the playoff again in 2026, as the SEC and Big Ten look to get more out of the format. / USA Today Sports | Imagn

College football could be on the verge of another big overhaul, and this time it could involve expanding the already-expanded playoff system in the future.

Momentum is building to expand the College Football Playoff from its current 12-team format to include either 14 or 16 teams as the SEC and Big Ten are leading the way in an effort to get more schools in the postseason, according to Yahoo Sports.

Brass from the 10 FBS conferences and independent Notre Dame have signed an agreement that gives more control to the two conferences, and now they’re looking to use that power to engineer an expanded playoff, among other demands, according to the report.

The new proposal would not only expand the playoff, but also include a system for assigning multiple automatic bids per conference into the playoff, and then finalize a schedule that would result in leagues earning millions more from media partners.

The proposal includes giving the SEC and Big Ten four automatic qualifiers each, two each to the Big 12 and ACC, and one to the highest-ranked Group of Five champion.

There would then be either one or three at-large bids, with one of those intended for Notre Dame should it finish ranked inside the top 14.

The top two seeds in a 14-team format would receive first-round byes, but there would be no byes in a 16-team playoff, according to the current reporting.

The current College Football Playoff agreement expires at the end of the 2025 football season, after which any changes to the format will no longer require a unanimous vote.

From that point on, it’s expected the SEC and Big Ten, the two emerging super conferences in the post-realignment era, will have overwhelming influence over how the playoff eventually looks.

ESPN reported in September that the SEC and Big Ten were seeking to get four automatic bids into the playoff, but that plan was met with resistance from other conferences and partners.

Members of the College Football Playoff Management Committee have confirmed that these ideas are being proposed and expected to be put into motion, according to Yahoo.

A final decision on the exact nature of the changes and when they’ll be put into effect is expected in the next couple of weeks.

The CFP Management Committee will meet on Feb. 25, and it’s there that the SEC and Big Ten could formally present their proposed changes to the College Football Playoff.

But the two conferences are expected to meet before that official conference, as is leadership in the Big 12 and the ACC at other independent meetings, as well.

What is said at those meetings could go a long way in changing college football forever.

More ... SEC, Big Ten to meet ahead of CFP talks

(Yahoo)

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James Parks
JAMES PARKS

James Parks is the founder and publisher of College Football HQ. He previously covered football for 247Sports and CBS Interactive. College Football HQ joined the Sports Illustrated Fannation Network in 2022.

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