PHOENIX - The College Football Playoff is headed for another major overhaul, and the reaction around the Valley ran the gamut from full support to open skepticism.
The CFP Management Committee unanimously approved an expansion to 24 teams, starting with the 2027-28 college football season. For Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham, that’s a welcome shift.
“I think it benefits every team in the country that wants to get into the tournament,” Dillingham said Monday. “Now, if you’re a team that’s always top 10, you’re probably saying, ‘Dang, more games I’ve got to play.’
But if you’re not one of those top 10 teams that are predominantly in, I think you’ve got a greater chance to enter the tournament. And if you get a greater chance to win the tournament, it’s a tournament.”
University of Arizona coach Brent Brennan sounded just as upbeat, especially with his program sitting at No. 22 in both the CFP and AP rankings.
“I think it’s great,” Brennan said. “I think that’s the way things are heading.”
The move also drew praise from the CFP leadership itself. Mark Keenum, chairman of the CFP Board of Managers, framed the decision as a broad win for the sport.
“I would like to commend the CFP Management Committee for their vision, diligence and collaboration in reaching this landmark decision,” Keenum said. “Opening the playoff to more programs, more student-athletes and more fan bases across the country is great for college football. We look forward to seeing this expanded format come to life next season.”
Dillingham pointed to the current state of the sport as part of the reason the change makes sense. In his view, college football already looks more open than it used to.
“There’s definitely more parity in college football,” he said. “There’s like two undefeated teams left, right?
Everybody else is one-loss, two-loss. There’s phenomenal three-loss teams.
“It’s a shift because people are so used to going undefeated and winning one (bowl) game … You’re so used to certain hierarchies and you’re so used to certain dominance that now that there is more parity, there’s more volatility because people have to respond.”
Dillingham also said the expanded bracket could alter how teams build and prepare.
“It’s a new age in college football,” Dillingham said at a press conference on Monday. “It will change how teams build rosters and how they scheme.
In college, schemes are so drastically different. So it will be interesting to see how that will play out since you’ll be playing across conferences which could be an advantage for teams.”
Not everyone was sold. Former Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said the change feels driven by money and comes with real costs.
“It’s all about the money, but I’m not sure it’s best for the game or the conferences,” Arians said. “Conference championships are gone.
That’s a shame. There’s a lot to figure out, hopefully for the better.”
Arians also said the process of selecting the field gets tougher as the bracket grows.
“It’s hard enough now filling 12 spots,” he said.
Former ASU quarterback and current Gilbert Williams Field football coach Steve Campbell shared some of the same concerns. He said the expansion brings back mixed feelings for people who grew up with the bowl system.
“You get mixed feelings when you’re somebody my age because you grew up with the bowl system, you played in the bowl system and those were big deals and big games,” Campbell said. “You’ve seen over the years as they’ve expanded the playoffs that those become less and less important.”
Campbell said rivalry games will still matter, but he worries the new setup could reduce the value of the regular season and take away from conference championship weekend.
While Campbell noted some of the potential drawbacks, Dillingham believes the expansion could significantly change how programs approach the game.
“It’s a new age in college football,” Dillingham said at a press conference on Monday. “It will change how teams build rosters and how they scheme.
In college, schemes are so drastically different. So it will be interesting to see how that will play out since you’ll be playing across conferences which could be an advantage for teams.”
The playoff has now gone from four teams when it launched for the 2014 season to 12 teams in 2024, and now to 24. The question left hanging is whether the added access will be worth what some believe the sport stands to lose.
For Phoenix Suns forward Ryan Dunn, at least, the bigger field sounds like fun.
“It’s going to be interesting. It’s going to be fun,” Dunn said. “I’m hoping some teams surprise people.”
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