Lincoln Riley, head football coach for USC, said that an expansion of college playoffs to 24 teams is likely given the talks taking place behind the scenes.
Riley revealed his thoughts on the expansion on Tuesday at Big Ten media days.
“This is something that our room has been unanimous on,” he said.
Riley said the expansion would help college football resemble other sports that have expanded playoff competition, such as NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments that include 76 teams.
“I think college football’s behind in that regard, and you’re seeing some of the repercussions of that, especially the nonconference scheduling being the biggest,” Riley said.
“I just think this is something that’s not going to diminish the game in any way,” Riley added. “Having more teams in a tournament to determine a champion is not going to make it worse. You’re going to have more playoff games on college campuses, which are unbelievable. You’re going to have better non-conference matchups, which preserve some of the traditions and rivalries and all the things that everybody loves about college football. I think it’s time that the idea should be embraced and I think more and more people are coming over to that.”
“I know there’s some mechanisms and that’s not easier than just turning off one light switch and flipping on another, but I have a hard time believing that that couldn’t be worked through.”
As noted by the New York Post, BIG Ten Commissioner has signaled his approval for expanded playoffs, arguing it would enhance the regular season by making more teams competitive for a playoff spot.
“While Petitti acknowledged that conference title games would be wiped out as part of an expanded playoff, Riley said that could be offset by tiebreakers to determine conference champions and revenue generated from additional playoff games,” noted the outlet.
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