What a 24-team bracket could look like if the AFCA got its way.
As reported by Awful Announcing and various industry insiders this week, the AFCA’s recommendation signals a growing desire among the sport's primary stakeholders to move away from the current 12-team model in favor of a structure that mirrors the long-standing success of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). This proposal aims to solve the dual problems of athlete workload and the perceived redundancy of the "13th game."
The push for 24 teams is not merely about including more programs; it is about creating a comprehensive national tournament that rewards regular-season excellence while providing a clearer path to the title. Under the AFCA’s envisioned model, the top eight seeds would likely receive a first-round bye, a format that has functioned effectively in the FCS for years.
By doubling the current 12-team field, the AFCA believes the sport can capture more national interest and mitigate the "opt-out" culture that has plagued non-playoff bowl games. Coaches argue that a larger field keeps more teams—and their fanbases—engaged deep into November. Furthermore, it provides a safety net for elite teams that may suffer an early-season stumble, ensuring the eventual champion is truly the best team playing at the end of the year.
The Logic Behind the 24-Team Bracket
By doubling the current 12-team field, the AFCA believes the sport can capture more national interest and mitigate the "opt-out" culture that has plagued non-playoff bowl games. Coaches argue that a larger field keeps more teams—and their fanbases—engaged deep into November. Furthermore, it provides a safety net for elite teams that may suffer an early-season stumble, ensuring the eventual champion is truly the best team playing at the end of the year.
With conferences like the Big Ten and SEC now housing 16 to 18 teams, the traditional divisional format has vanished. This often leads to championship game rematches of contests played just weeks prior, or scenarios where a highly-ranked team is knocked out of playoff contention by a lower-ranked opponent in a game that many coaches feel has become a "meaningless hurdle."
By removing the conference title games, the AFCA proposes that the week currently reserved for those matchups could serve as the opening round of the 24-team playoff. This shift would maintain the current season length while allowing the tournament to breathe, potentially reducing the physical toll on student-athletes who could otherwise play up to 17 or 18 games in a single campaign.
Executive Director of the AFCA, Todd Berry, has long been a proponent of streamlining the college football calendar. The consensus among the coaching body is that the current trajectory—layering a 12-team playoff on top of a full regular season and a conference title game—is unsustainable for player health.
Prioritizing Player Safety and the Calendar
"The concern has always been the cumulative impact of these games," noted industry analysts regarding the AFCA's stance. The proposed 24-team model, combined with the removal of the 13th game, effectively trades a high-stakes conference exhibition for a high-stakes national tournament game. This approach would allow the season to conclude in a timeframe that respects the academic calendar and the NFL Draft preparation window.
Navigating the Financial and Media Hurdles
Conference commissioners, who ultimately hold the power in the CFP Board of Managers, may be hesitant to part with the lucrative media rights fees generated by title games in Atlanta, Indianapolis, and Arlington. However, the prospect of a 24-team national tournament offers a different, potentially more lucrative, inventory of games. A 23-game playoff series would represent a massive spike in high-value content compared to the current system, potentially offsetting the loss of the conference championship weekend.
Impact on the Regular Season
Furthermore, the removal of conference title games would place a greater emphasis on the regular-season standings. The "Conference Champion" would be determined by the best record over the 12-game schedule, returning a sense of prestige to the round-robin or balanced-schedule results.
What Comes Next?
If adopted, this would represent the final evolution of the playoff system, moving college football into a true tournament-style format that aligns it with every other level of the sport. For now, the AFCA has thrown down the gauntlet, challenging the status quo in favor of a broader, more streamlined path to a national championship.
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