CHARLOTTE, N.C. — ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips told ESPN on Wednesday that there is “a lot of push” to expand the 2024 college football playoffs.
CFP management decided in early September to expand the playoffs to 12 teams in 2026, but 10-man FBS commissioner and Notre Dame Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick are working on the expansion two years early. I’m in.
“We’re trying. We’re committed to doing it,” Phillips told ESPN at ACC Basketball Media Day. “We’re really, really, across 10 conferences and Notre Dame. I’m really happy with the work that’s been done over the last five or six months, all 10 conferences and Notre Dame. We’re going to get it done.” It’s not insurmountable, but this time is not on our side.
“There’s a lot of push to get this thing done.”
Phillips also said it was “time to consider” expanding the NCAA basketball tournament. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey opened the conversation in August, telling Sports Illustrated that he was prepared to “take a fresh look” at the tournament.
Debate has heated up in the sport since then, but potential changes seem to be mostly in the exploration stage.
“This is the crown jewel of all of our championships,” Phillips told ESPN. You have to respect that and understand that it’s in a really good, healthy place, but you’re also trying to think about that to stay progressive.
“I believe that [automatic qualifiers] Winning the championship is important. It’s important. I’m not interested in reducing AQ. i haven’t. However, we are also committed to ensuring that tournaments are attended by those who deserve them. … trying to balance access across Division I. Let AQ stay there for the meeting. they need it. They need it for the financial part, for the emotional part, to be part of it. It just leads to debate and we need to take a holistic view and review college basketball and tournaments.”
Phillips said the logistics (calendar, format, financial aspects) of such an expansion have not yet been worked out, but he is interested in exploring it.
“More access, more opportunities for more young men and women,” he said. “It has many pluses.”
ACC coaches were divided on whether to expand the NCAA Tournament. Miami’s Jim Larranaga and Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim agreed, each with their own preferred format.
Larranaga wants all 32 conference champions to receive byes and 64 general teams to play in the first round.
“I have long been a proponent of expanding the NCAA Tournament,” he said. It’s always the same team, so expanding the tournament to 96 really should go from 64 to 96.”
Boheim hopes Dayton’s First Four will expand to all first-round sites. This will allow the tournament to fit within his normal three-week window.
“I put this forward 25 years ago,” he said. “There are three times better [programs] than when there were 48 teams in the tournament. Put your money in, good school. It’s not a difficult development. The argument I’ve heard is that it dilutes the tournament, but that’s nonsense. It actually makes the tournament better. …the tournament has better teams than before. ”
Virginia’s Tony Bennett likes it as-is, but doesn’t object to smaller extensions.
“I think the NCAA Tournament is without a doubt the best sporting event from start to finish,” said Bennett. “We don’t want to lose what we have. It will keep things and if there are some tweaks here and there, I would like that, but it’s not a major overhaul.”
Virginia Tech’s Mike Young would prefer the status quo.
“I’m a purist,” said Young. “I don’t like it…why do we dabble in something that is so successful, so unique to the world of athletics, hugely popular, and has been around forever?” Is not it?”
