This is an opinion column.<\/b><\/p>\n
The preeminent conference in college football has it right.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m talking about the Big Ten, of course, and its idea of expanding the College Football Playoff to 24 teams.<\/p>\n
The SEC wants 16 for reasons that no longer make sense for the league, but I\u2019m curious to see if league commissioner Greg Sankey is smart enough to admit he\u2019s no longer correct.<\/p>\n
I doubt it.<\/p>\n
Sankey was once the most powerful suit in college football. Still? The SEC is poor these days, compared to the Big Ten, but Sankey is still clutching tightly in his hands one critical piece of currency. It\u2019s the decision to shape the immediate future of the College Football Playoff.<\/p>\n
College football commissioners are meeting in Miami the day before the national championship game to discuss playoff expansion. All the leagues will be represented, but really it\u2019s just an arm-wrestling competition between Sankey of the SEC and commissioner Petitti of the Big Ten. <\/p>\n
The Big Ten is pushing for a new 24-team field. The SEC wants 16. Most people believe the meeting will end with nothing being accomplished and the playoff remaining at 12 for at least another year. For the SEC, that would be a mistake.<\/p>\n
By the day, the Big Ten is gaining momentum in this new era of college football. I\u2019m not sure how much longer the teams in the SEC can keep up.<\/p>\n
There was a time when a limited number of playoff spots helped the SEC remain powerful. It was all about recruiting. No one could do it better than the SEC. That model has changed. Now it\u2019s all about money.<\/p>\n
And the Big Ten has more.<\/p>\n
The best thing for the SEC is to support a playoff model that democratizes the sport, or at least in theory helps make it a little easier for underprivileged football teams. And isn\u2019t Alabama now one of those meager outposts on the road to another national championship for the Big Ten?<\/p>\n
Ole Miss was the only SEC school to make the CFP semifinals this season, and it\u2019s only going to get tougher.<\/p>\n
Alabama was a shell of its former self in 2025, but now its best defenders are all defecting for teams up north. Defensive linemen James Smith and Qua Russaw are off to Ohio State and another elite defensive lineman, Keon Keeley, is bound for Notre Dame. <\/p>\n
Even defensive line backup Jordan Renaud is leaving Alabama.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s disheartening. The Crimson Tide is being bled dry.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve joked about the Big Ten\u2019s War of Northern Aggression, but you can\u2019t really argue with the most important trend of all. The SEC hasn\u2019t won a national championship since 2022. Teams like Ohio State, Michigan, Oregon and Indiana are now better positioned for the future. Who\u2019s next?<\/p>\n