College Football Playoff 'more serious' than ever about 24 teams, but 2027 start not guaranteed

The CFP executive director sees a 'good probability' that an expanded field could be ready next season, but the final details will decide it

Oct 1, 2026 at 12:17 pm ET • 4 min read

The CFP is nearing the end of its exclusive negotiating window with ESPN over what a 24-team College Football Playoff will look like and how much money it could draw for its conferences.

The sport is as close to expanding the CFP from 12 to 24 teams as it has ever been, but CFP executive director Rich Clark isn't ready to declare it done as the final week of negotiations with ESPN begins. The CFP management committee, made up of 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua, met Wednesday at the Big Ten headquarters in Rosemont, Illinois, for updates on ESPN negotiations and to evaluate the logistical scheduling needed for a 24-team bracket.

"I would say that there's still a lot of things that we have to work through, and I would not call it a foregone conclusion at this point," Clark told CBS Sports in a phone interview after the meeting.

Nor is a 2027 start guaranteed if the playoff does expand. Clark believes the CFP could be ready for next season, but he stopped short of a promise.

"I think we would be," Clark said. "We would have to take a hard look at that because a lot of it would depend on how some of the final details get fleshed out. But, I think there's a good probability that we could be ready to do it next season."

The CFP faces a Dec. 1 deadline to make format changes for the 2027-28 season. A vote to expand before then would not, by itself, put 24 teams on the field next year. If the logistics can't be finished in time, the bigger bracket would wait until 2028 at the earliest.

The emerging favorite model includes the top 23 teams in the CFP Selection Committee's final rankings and the highest-ranked Group of Six team. The playoff would begin two weeks after the regular season, in the second week of December, and would require the sunsetting of conference championship games. The first two rounds of the CFP would be played on campuses. Eight games would be played in the first round and eight more in the second round, with eight teams receiving byes and awaiting the first-round winners. 

Conference leaders want assurance of an additional revenue stream north of $200 million to offset the loss of their championship games. If ESPN and the CFP don't reach terms by Oct. 9, the playoff can take the expanded package to the open market.

The 24-team model runs concurrently with the Army-Navy game, traditionally scheduled on the second Saturday of December, the week after conference championship games. Clark said the CFP has not spoken directly with the academies but has discussed the issue with the American Conference, where Navy is a full member and Army plays football.

While the Army-Navy game's television broadcast window remains protected on the second Saturday in December, playoff matchups could potentially be scheduled around it. The CFP remains mindful of the game's tradition, leading to preliminary discussions about rescheduling it to the first Saturday of December. However, no official determination has been made. Keeping the game on its current date after Selection Sunday creates logistical hurdles, particularly if Army or Navy qualifies for the Group of Six postseason spot.

"We did discuss potential decisions they may make regarding when their game is played and how it relates to the selection process," Clark said.

The Big Ten and SEC control the CFP format, and both leagues must see eye to eye to make changes. The Big Ten has pushed for 24 teams for more than a year, and the SEC preferred 16 but has been open to moving to 24 over the last several months. The primary motivator is recouping money lost from deleting the SEC's conference championship game, which sources told CBS Sports is around $100 million. 

The opening came in late August, when SEC commissioner Greg Sankey sent the management committee a memo outlining his conditions for a 24-team field. Chief among them: power-conference teams must play 10 games against power-conference opponents or Notre Dame to be eligible. The ACC, Big 12 and SEC already require that. The Big Ten does not, but its commissioner, Tony Petitti, has said the league would adopt the standard if it secures the SEC's support.

While the Big Ten did not finalize this scheduling pledge during Wednesday's meeting, it is not anticipated to present a problem.

The CFP management committee is not scheduled to meet again before the ESPN window closes, but Clark said the commissioners are on call for an ad hoc meeting.

"Everyone is ready for that to occur if necessary," he said.

The committee's next regularly scheduled meeting is Jan. 24, 2027, nearly two months after the Dec. 1 deadline.

Clark said the group has cleared enough hurdles to treat the 24-team model as a real option.

"They have worked through a lot of the issues to be seriously talking about this format," Clark said. "So, we're more serious about it than we have been in the past. But there are still some things we have to work through."