Why the Big Ten’s College Football Playoff Plan Sucks (But Expansion Doesn’t)

The Big Ten announced it is looking to expand the College Football Playoff from 12 to 24 or 28 teams. Along with this, the Big Ten and SEC would be subject to seven automatic bids, while the Big 12 and ACC would have five of their own.

The current proposed model for expansion is terrible, but the idea of expansion … I don’t hate it.

In college sports, the current bowl model is all but dead with the expanded playoff. If your team is playing in a bowl game and you have any potential of becoming an NFL draft pick, you’re going to sit out.

I don’t begrudge any player who sits out of a bowl game, but it sucks to see the best of the best on the sidelines of what should be the most important games of the year.

With an expanded playoff model, we’re going to see more high-end talent playing in meaningful postseason football.

Not only will more Power Five programs see the benefits of the expanded playoff, but smaller schools could also benefit from a smaller pool of bowl games. These would most likely take place before the playoffs or during off periods of the playoff schedule and could let these smaller games be better highlighted on bigger television networks.

Another key benefit of the playoffs is the end of conference championship games. The expanded conferences have led to scheduling imbalances across a conference schedule each year, and having a conference championship where two teams play completely different schedules is no longer justified.

As long as mega-conferences are still a thing, conference championships will quickly become a thing of the past in college football.

The main criticism of expanding the playoffs is that there will be more blowouts.

There’s no great argument against that, as the gap between the best of the best in college football only seems to be widening with the introduction of NIL and the transfer portal. But it will only take one great upset to make expansion worth it.

The 2007 Fiesta Bowl between Boise State and Oklahoma is one of the most memorable college football games of all time. Getting the chance to see a game like this occur because more horses can be in the race will always feel worth it to me. That’s why the Big Ten’s current proposal still needs some workshopping.

Having a model where potentially only one non-Power conference team makes the playoff is ridiculous, and that’s not even considering what they will do with Notre Dame. Having one or two automatic qualifiers for the bigger conferences is fair, but I’m not sure a 7-5 Michigan should have a guaranteed spot just because it plays in the Big Ten.

My only other genuine concern is where the games would be played. Outside of money, the NCAA is looking to expand the playoff hoping to create chaos with additional games. If expansion just means more home playoff games, then my opinion could easily switch.

Home-field advantage is too significant at the college level and would significantly lower the odds of any upsets happening in the early rounds. If these games could be played at neutral sites, then I am all in on this proposal.

When it comes down to it, I don’t understand why people are complaining about more football. The same people who go crazy over a Tuesday night MACtion game will complain about a potential Ohio State blowout over NC State. But what if the Wolfpack could ever pull off that upset?

Hope will always make an expanded playoff a great idea.