ACC in favor of College Football Playoff expansion to 24 teams, says Commissioner Jim Phillips
By Ethan Stone
Published:
ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips is in favor of expanding the College Football Playoff to 24 teams, he said at the ACC Spring meetings in Florida on Wednesday.
“Our desire with the coaches and the ADs is 24,” Phillips said. “When you’re leaving national championship-contending teams out of the playoff, you don’t have the right number. We lived through it, we suffered through it with Florida State, when the field was four.
Phillips also noted that other schools “suffered” because of the 12-team model, pointing out Notre Dame which missed this past year’s playoff.
These comments are significant because they put extra pressure on the SEC, which is set to have meetings in just a few weeks. Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark also noted that he would like to see the Playoff expanded to 24 teams this week. “We’ll see what comes out of SEC meetings — and Big Ten meetings and Big 12 meetings,” Phillips said Wednesday, via Brandon Marcello.
Notably, Phillips mentioned that ESPN is against expansion, preferring to keep the field at 12. If expansion is necessary, ESPN would like to see 16 teams enter the field instead of 24, per Phillips.
Of course, ESPN has a pretty big stake in keeping the Playoff at 12 teams. Any movement would threaten their hold on TV rights for the event, and expansion would likely necessitate other networks to enter the fray.
Many online fans argue that expansion would lessen the importance and impact of the regular season. Where do you stand?
Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.
