CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock talks playoff expansion and Colorado Buffaloes

Bill Hancock has announced his plans to retire in early 2025. But for the next 18 plus months, there’s still much more to accomplish.

“We have a lot of work to do to get ready for the new event,” said Hancock.

“I am looking forward to retirement, with some mixed emotions, more positive than negative, but we”be come a long way and I feel really about where the CFP is at.”

Many of the positives towards what the Playoff represents can be linked to Hancock's vision. The 72-year-old has been part of college athletics for decades and took over as head of the committee shortly after the Playoff came to life in 2012. A four-team bracket is about to be a 12-team final after the 2024 season.

Hancock sees the expansion as a cause for celebration with the FBS finally moving to a truly enhanced format. More teams being involved translates into a bit more money on the books, which is a win-win for everyone involved.

Outside of the Playoff, Hancock was asked about Colorado's reconstruction with Deion Sanders coming to Boulder. He applauded his longtime friend, CU's athletic director Rick George, and says the Buffs are headed in the right direction.

"College football needs Colorado," Hancock noted. "I've known Rick George for a long time and I know he has the guy that he wants and the guy who's going to be key to bringing the Buffs back."

When Hancock mentions Colorado, the feeling is bittersweet for him knowing the history. In January 2001, Bill's son, William Hancock III, was one of the ten people on board a small private plane that crashed outside of the Denver Metro area shortly after takeoff. He was working at Oklahoma State as a media relations coordinator and was traveling home with the men's basketball team after playing at CU.