SEC Commissioner Urges Patience as College Football Playoff Expansion Talk Intensifies

Greg Sankey suggests caution on CFP expansion as the Big Ten's 24-team proposal gains support from nearly every corner of college football.

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey pushed back against the idea that his conference is seeking to slow college football's playoff expansion. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

The College Football Playoff expansion debate is heating up again, and SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey is not ready to rush to a decision. As the Big Ten's 24-team field proposal gains momentum among conference leaders, Sankey is urging the sport to slow down and think through the consequences.

Speaking on The Paul Finebaum Show from the Regions Tradition Pro-Am in Birmingham, Sankey made clear the SEC has not moved from its preference for a 16-team format. While he stopped short of outright rejecting the 24-team concept, his message was pointed.

"We have to do the homework," Sankey said. "And when we went from 4 to 12, I think one of the mistakes was we announced we're going to 12 and then negotiated with the media. We should understand the media marketplace before we have an increase in, for example, the number of teams."

SEC vs. Big Ten on playoff format

The standoff between Sankey and Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti is the central tension in this story. The two men effectively hold veto power over any CFP format change, meaning no deal gets done without both of them on board.

And right now, they are not close. The ACC, Big 12 and Notre Dame are reportedly leaning toward the 24-team model, giving the Big Ten's proposal a significant runway. Even some SEC coaches and athletic directors have privately expressed interest. The White House reportedly weighed in with support for doubling the field.

SEC Commissioner @GregSankey recaps last week CFP Meetings and what the big talking points were. pic.twitter.com/cEo2aLs2Ry

— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) April 29, 2026

But Sankey pushed back on the groundswell, raising practical concerns that have gone largely unaddressed. "There's not a lot of research into what the media marketplace's interest is in a 24-team playoff," he said.

He also flagged the risk of a longer season, pointing out that when the field expanded from four to 12 teams, player health was a major talking point that now seems to have quietly disappeared from the conversation.

What a 24-team CFP would actually mean

A 24-team field would reshape college football in ways that go beyond just more games. Conference championship games would likely be eliminated, a significant structural shift that Sankey has been careful to note carries contractual complications, not just philosophical ones.

The model would grant four automatic bids to each Power Four conference, with first-round byes for the top eight teams in the final CFP rankings. Supporters frame the extra 12 games primarily as a financial opportunity, one that would force a renegotiation of the CFP's current media rights deal with ESPN, which runs through 2032, and could bring in additional broadcast partners like FOX.

Sankey's skepticism, however, is grounded in a legitimate institutional concern. The 12-team format is only one season old, and the sport is already debating blowing it up. CFP Executive Director Rich Clark acknowledged the complexity, noting the group does not want to make a decision with unexamined ripple effects.

Big 10 commissioner Tony Petitti (left) and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey attend the game between the LSU Tigers and the Southern California Trojans at Allegiant Stadium. | Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

A formal decision on any 2027 format change must be made by Dec. 1. When asked whether he and Petitti could agree by then, Sankey offered a measured "we'll see," followed by roughly 20 seconds of silence in the room.

The next big event for the conference is the SEC's football media days, which are scheduled for July 20-23 in Tampa, Florida.