Nick Saban opposes 24-team College Football Playoff expansion
Former Alabama coach Nick Saban has publicly criticized the proposed expansion of the College Football Playoff to 24 teams. Saban argues the move is driven primarily by financial motives rather than competitive integrity.
Why it matters
The expansion of college football playoffs represents a major shift in the financial and competitive structure of collegiate athletics.
The College Football Playoff is in the process of expanding to 24 teams starting in the 2027 season, much to the chagrin of Nick Saban, who says doubling the number of teams in the current bracket is far too many.
"I would be for 16 (teams) – I think that would be a good compromise," Saban said Friday on ESPN. "I would be for keeping conference championship games as maybe a play-in for the 16? Which, now, you have 20 teams that have hope. But I don't think there's much support for that. I don't think anybody really likes that."
The new format is expected to feature a "19+4+1" model with 19 at-large bids, four reserved for Power Four champions and one for the highest-rated Group of Six champ. Theoretically, that would mean almost every team in the final top 25 rankings would play in the playoff.
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