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Cam Ward says a 24-team College Football Playoff would be the ‘sweet spot’
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Cam Ward was part of an elite group of 4 players who were up for the Heisman Trophy on Saturday night, and that is something special.
But the Miami quarterback who set the ACC on fire this fall would like to be getting ready for a College Football Playoff first-round game next week. That would be really special. Instead, Ward and the Hurricanes are getting prepared for the Pop-Tarts Bowl against Iowa State in a few weeks.
Ward has already committed to playing in the bowl game but obviously would rather be playing in a Playoff game. The Hurricanes looked primed to get there all season until they blew a 21-0 lead in a stunning 42-38 loss at Syracuse in their regular-season finale. That loss effectively did Miami in for the Playoff, and it cost the Canes a trip to the ACC title game, too.
So, Ward, who played in the 2021 FCS playoffs with Incarnate Word, had a suggestion for the Playoff committee going forward. He believes the “sweet spot” for the CFP field would be between 16-24 teams, more like how the FCS does it. The FCS has 24 teams in its field, and if the FBS had the same number, Ward’s Hurricanes would be Playoff-bound.
Ward, who won the Davey O’Brien Award on Thursday, would like to add the Heisman to his trophy haul. He’s a finalist on Saturday night along with Colorado’s Travis Hunter, Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty, and Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel. Ward threw for an eye-popping 4,123 yards with 36 touchdowns and 7 interceptions this season, while running for 196 yards and 4 rushing TDs.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
