While the expansion to a 12-team College Football Playoff format has worked well, from the moment the change was adopted, all eyes were on expanding again. Over the past few years, the conference commissioners have constantly met, but failed to agree upon a new model that everyone can agree upon.
As of late, the momentum has grown significantly to move the CFP to a 24-team model, doubling the field. While fans believe the move would just water down the product, the writing on the wall says that whether it's liked or not, the change is on the way.
The AFCA Board votes to support Playoff expansion with death of conference championships
On Tuesday, Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger broke the news that the AFCA board voted last week to support the expansion of the Playoff while also supporting the end of conference championship games, and ending the season even earlier.
The coaches have spoken: In a vote last week, the AFCA Board swung its support behind (1) a playoff with the max participants (likely 24); (2) discontinuing conference championships; and (3) ending CFP by second week of January, they tell @YahooSports.https://t.co/kZ2wlHmB3r
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) May 5, 2026
The death of conference championship games has clearly been coming, but it's a move many don't agree with. Coaches like Kirby Smart still believe that winning a conference championship is a major achievement for teams.
"We’ve seen it both ways, but I will never apologize for winning an SEC title, I think it’s the hardest thing to do in sports, winning the dang SEC title in almost any sport, because our conference is so hard. And when we went to 16 teams in our league, it only made it harder."Kirby Smart
All signs point toward College Football Playoff expansion, but the format hasn't been locked in place to this point. It'll be interesting to see with all this momentum if the SEC and Big Ten can finally put down their swords and reach an agreement as both sides have made expansion harder for everyone else as they continue to jockey for power.
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