ATLANTA – The 12-Team College Football Playoff format has only been in effect for one season, and the biggest story surrounding it this season is whether there will be another expansion.
The SEC Media Days have just kicked off, and with it comes speculations around the landscape of college football in the upcoming years. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey began talking about expansion regarding the College Football Playoff.
In the first year of the 12-Team format, Sankey believed, “the first year of the 12-team College Football Playoff was a success. That doesn't mean everything was perfect, and there are certainly opportunities to improve.”
He felt that it gave teams that would normally be talking about a lesser bowl game, such as teams like Boise State and SMU, and instead they were talking about potentially winning a national title.
Coming out of the commissioners meeting in Destin though, Sankey felt there was a lot of positive conversation on the potential of an expansion beyond the 12-Team format saying, “we think growth beyond 12 could be positive and should be pursued.”
Sankey also mentioned that there is belief that the selection process itself could be updated with a new potential metric under the Strength of Record category.
Although there seems to be some agreement in the idea of expanding the playoff, Sankey determined, “Much more work is needed, and more needs to be understood. We have to see the homework, if you will, but the discussion and the direction of the discussion is viewed positively from our perspective within the need for timely decision-making.”
Sankey also said the 12-team format could stay if there aren’t complete agreements on both sides, stating that he doesn’t want to rush into anything.
The deadline to finalize the potential expansion for the 2026 season is Dec. 1, 2025.