A 24-team College Football Playoff is looking less like a possibility and more like the next step, with a 2027 debut now appearing likely. The SEC, which had initially been against the idea, now seems to be on board with commissioner Greg Sankey and the league aligning behind expansion. The Big Ten first floated the concept in 2025, and over the months that followed the ACC, Big 12 and Notre Dame also backed it.
With the field set to grow from 12 to 24, the real question has shifted to how teams will actually get in. According to a Thursday report from CBSSports.com, the leading framework is the so-called "19+4+1" model: 19 at-large bids, four automatic spots for the Power 4 conference champions, and one automatic berth for the highest-ranked Group of 6 champion.
CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz reported that the playoff is nearing a deal to expand to 24 teams, with the new format scheduled to arrive in 2027, though final approvals are still needed. The report also said the 30-day negotiating window between the CFP and ESPN was supposed to end last week before playoff officials extended it after activating a clause.
One major ripple effect of a 24-team field would be the end of conference championship games. CBS Sports’ John Talty put it bluntly: "They're gonna be gone," Talty said. "That's the reality of the situation."
That raises the obvious money question for leagues like the Big Ten and SEC if their title games disappear. Brandon Marcello of CBS argued there’s no real doubt those conferences would still come out ahead.
The expansion talks have also centered on television rights and how the money gets split. ESPN’s current six-year, $7.8 billion contract runs through the 2031-32 season and already covers a playoff field of up to 14 teams at no extra cost.
During the negotiations, some people involved believed ESPN would keep the full playoff, according to CBS Sports. Another option under discussion was to divide the rights among multiple networks in order to meet the CFP’s financial targets. ESPN also has matching rights if the package is opened up.
Ohio State has won three national championships this century: one in the 2-team BCS era in 2002, one in the first year of the four-team College Football Playoff in 2014, and another in the first season of the 12-team CFP in 2024.
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Ohio State Gets Pulled Into A High-Stakes Fight Over Eligibility
The eligibility fight surrounding fifth-year athletes in Ohio has now spilled into federal court, with the NCAA suing Gov. Mike DeWine over the executive order that lets state universities challenge the associations ruling. For Ohio State and the rest of the states Division I programs, the issue is more than paperwork. It goes straight to how coaches build rosters, manage scholarship spots and weigh whether a veteran player can give them one more season.
The NCAA argues the order violates the Commerce Clause and the First Amendment by giving Ohio schools an unfair edge and allowing them to sidestep NCAA rules. Ohios Division I programs reportedly support the directive, and coaches have said they will make decisions based on what helps the team most. For a Buckeyes program always balancing immediate ambitions against long-term roster planning, the legal standoff adds another layer of uncertainty to an already delicate eligibility question. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Faces Two Pressing Questions In Huge Indiana Test
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Julian Sayins protection will matter just as much, because Indiana can make life uncomfortable if Ohio State lets pressure reach the quarterback too often. On the other side of the ball, the Buckeyes also need to close quickly on Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover and create enough disruption to tilt the game their way, with this trip offering both a chance at revenge and a test of whether Ohio State can handle the kind of pressure that usually decides big conference games. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Has A Chance To Shake Up The Big Ten Race
The Big Ten race is tightening at exactly the moment Ohio State would prefer some breathing room, and Indiana suddenly has a chance to make the leagues path a lot more complicated. The weekend slate comes with plenty of moving parts, from quarterback uncertainty elsewhere in the national picture to Ohio States own offensive line questions, but the Hoosiers are now positioned as one of the teams that could force the conversation to shift in a hurry.
For Buckeyes fans, that makes this a scoreboard-watching weekend as much as anything else. Alongside the predictions for the games themselves, the broadcasts are also expected to stir up talk about a possible 24-team College Football Playoff expansion, adding another layer to a week already loaded with speculation. If Indiana does its part, Ohio State may find the margin for error in the conference race getting thinner than it already is. [Read more 🡒]