PHOENIX – Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur may be a rarity in the sporting world. When asked Monday for his reaction to the news that the College Football Playoff Management Committee had unanimously approved playoff expansion to 24 teams, beginning with the 2027-28 college football season, LaFleur essentially shrugged.
“Had no idea,” he said. “I’ll be honest with you, I don’t watch any college football until it’s time for the draft.”
LaFleur must also avoid social media, digital media, broadcast media and public spaces because the CFP expansion was a major talking point on Monday. Predictably, the reactions and opinions were all over the map.
Arizona State football coach Kenny Dillingham is a fan of the decision.
“I think it benefits every team in the country that wants to get into the tournament,” Dillingham said Monday. “Now, if you’re a team that’s always top 10, you’re probably saying, ‘Dang, more games I’ve got to play.’ But if you’re not one of those top 10 teams that are predominantly in, I think you’ve got a greater chance to enter the tournament. And if you get a greater chance to win the tournament, it’s a tournament.”
One of LaFleur’s predecessors wasn’t as sold on the idea.
“It’s all about the money, but I’m not sure it’s best for the game or the conferences,” said former Cardinals coach Bruce Arians. “Conference championships are gone. That’s a shame. There’s a lot to figure out, hopefully for the better.”
As Dillingham noted, programs without the traditions and consistency of Alabama or Ohio State like the move.
“I think it’s great,” said University of Arizona coach Brent Brennan, whose team is ranked No. 22 in both the CFP and AP rankings. “I think that’s the way things are heading.”
Dillingham believes the move is in line with a changing college football landscape that features more parity.
“There’s definitely more parity in college football,” he said. “There’s like two undefeated teams left, right? Everybody else is one-loss, two-loss. There’s phenomenal three-loss teams.
“It’s a shift because people are so used to going undefeated and winning one (bowl) game … You’re so used to certain hierarchies and you’re so used to certain dominance that now that there is more parity, there’s more volatility because people have to respond.”
While the expanded format creates more opportunities, some football sources worry about what will be lost in the expansion.
“You get mixed feelings when you’re somebody my age because you grew up with the bowl system, you played in the bowl system and those were big deals and big games,” said former ASU quarterback and current Gilbert Williams Field football coach Steve Campbell. “You’ve seen over the years as they’ve expanded the playoffs that those become less and less important.”
While Campbell still believes that rivalry games will matter, he worries about the ability of a 24-seed to compete with a high seed, he worries that the new format “takes a little bit of value out of regular season games” and he said that “losing conference championships is definitely kind of a downside to it. That was always a great weekend.”
While Campbell noted some of the potential drawbacks, Dillingham believes the expansion could significantly change how programs approach the game.
“It’s a new age in college football,” Dillingham said at a press conference on Monday. “It will change how teams build rosters and how they scheme. In college, schemes are so drastically different. So it will be interesting to see how that will play out since you’ll be playing across conferences which could be an advantage for teams.”
When the CFP was established for the 2014 season, it featured four teams. That four-team format lasted for 10 seasons before expanding to 12 teams for the 2024 season.
Now that number has been doubled.
While Arians worries about the increased subjectivity of selecting those final teams – “it’s hard enough now filling 12 spots” – the 24-team playoff will ultimately determine whether providing more opportunities for teams outweighs the potential consequences.
For casual fans, however, the new format should at least provide entertainment.
“It’s going to be interesting. It’s going to be fun,” Phoenix Suns forward Ryan Dunn said. “I’m hoping some teams surprise people.”
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