When Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule said the College Football Playoff should expand to 40 teams, most people took it as a lighthearted exaggeration. And to be fair, it probably was. But when you listen to his reasoning, the comment starts to sound less like a joke and more like a plea.
Rhule’s full quote—“The more spots the better, man. Make that thing 40 and let’s go”—might sound like a punchline, but it came as he discussed how Nebraska and other Big Ten programs face disadvantages with their nine-game conference schedule.
Compared to leagues like the SEC that only play eight, Big Ten teams have fewer chances to pad their win totals. But let’s be honest: that’s not why Rhule wants the Playoff to grow. He wants to make sure his team has a chance to be included—because even with the Playoff expanding to 12 teams and likely 16 soon Nebraska still isn’t in position to compete for one of those spots.
Nebraska Needs More Than Expansion
Rhule laid it out pretty clearly. In years past, Nebraska was 5-7. “Now you add in one more Group of Five team, you take out one more Big Ten [team], actually now you’re 6-6,” he said. “This year you’re 6-6, now you’re 7-5.” That’s not Playoff-caliber football. That’s a coach trying to reach bowl eligibility. Expanding the field to 40 teams wouldn’t reward elite performance—it would reward mediocrity.
Rhule also talked about the benefit of potential home Playoff games in cold-weather stadiums like Nebraska’s Memorial Stadium. He said he’d love to see teams like UCLA or USC forced to travel to the Midwest in December or January. But that only matters if Nebraska’s actually hosting a game—something that feels far-fetched right now.
There’s a clear motivation behind Rhule’s suggestion: survival. He sees what Nebraska is up against in the current system and recognizes how far behind his program still is. He’s hoping that by growing the postseason to include more teams, Nebraska can sneak in through the back door while they continue to rebuild. But in a sport built on competition and merit, that kind of thinking won’t cut it.
A 40-team Playoff would dilute the meaning of making it. Rhule might be half-joking, but his comment reveals a program trying to stay relevant in an era where relevance is earned on the field—not handed out through expansion.