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Joel Klatt incinerates possibility of 16-team Playoff: ‘It’s greedy’
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Joel Klatt has some passionate feelings about the College Football Playoff and what he believes is the best direction for the sport. He’s not afraid to share those feelings, and he dove into the recently proposed 16-team format.
Under that format, the SEC and Big Ten would receive 4 automatic bids, with the ACC and Big 12 landing 2 automatic bids. The Group of 5 teams would maintain 1 automatic spot with 3 final spots up for grabs to at-large teams, with Notre Dame falling into that final group (if qualified via seeding) since the Irish remain independent.
Along with that format, the SEC and Big Ten are reportedly considering the potential to have play-in games across Championship Weekend. Those games would determine the 4 automatic spots in the Playoff.
Considering all the proposals out there so far, Klatt described it all as the major conferences searching for a “safety net” in the selection process, something he is not fond of.
“It’s unneeded, it’s unwarranted and it’s greedy,” said Klatt. “I do not like the 16-team model for this reason. It is not needed. We do not need to be redundant.
“If we go to an expanded Playoff, all we need is 14. All we need is 4 automatic bids from the SEC and the Big Ten, 2 from the ACC and the Big 12, 1 for the Group of 5 and 1 for Notre Dame or at-large. That’s all we need.”
When he got to the reasons why, Klatt explained most fans in college football want to see the access-based model, something that is achievable with play-in games during Championship Weekend. Adding in extra at-large spots beyond that brings the final spots back into the hands of the CFP Committee, something that the vast majority following the sport hates.
“Sometimes you’ve got to take the training wheels off,” said Klatt about not having the safety net of additional at-large spots. “And I say this with respect, now you’re getting into the greed zone… plus, as soon as you start getting into that territory, you start bringing the committee back into it. We want access-based, we don’t want the committee. College football fans hate the committee.”
With the SEC Spring Meetings going down in Destin, the preferred Playoff model of the conference is going to be a major discussion as the SEC and Big Ten look to further control the future of the CFP.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
