Interesting read here on the college bowls in general, but the tidbit that really caught my eye was the bit about expanding the college playoff to 8, BEFORE the contract expired in 2026.
https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/sports/lsu/article_4c91b0a2-71a5-11e8-98fe-6ffc7050fbc3.html
Of course, there is the prospect much of the CFP landscape, and potentially the rest of the bowl picture as well, could be shaken up by the expansion of the College Football Playoff from four to eight teams. In January, former CBS Sports president Neal Pilson predicted the CFP would expand during the length of its current contract.
Pilson cited two factors: rights fees and competitive pressures. Pilson estimated rights fees paid by ESPN to the CFP could jump from the current $7.2 billion to $10 billion for an eight-team playoff. He also cited a reprise of SEC fatigue with this past season’s Alabama-Georgia final, similar to the SEC fatigue after the 2011 season ended with a BCS championship game between LSU and Alabama that led to the creation of the CFP in the first place.
https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/sports/lsu/article_4c91b0a2-71a5-11e8-98fe-6ffc7050fbc3.html
Of course, there is the prospect much of the CFP landscape, and potentially the rest of the bowl picture as well, could be shaken up by the expansion of the College Football Playoff from four to eight teams. In January, former CBS Sports president Neal Pilson predicted the CFP would expand during the length of its current contract.
Pilson cited two factors: rights fees and competitive pressures. Pilson estimated rights fees paid by ESPN to the CFP could jump from the current $7.2 billion to $10 billion for an eight-team playoff. He also cited a reprise of SEC fatigue with this past season’s Alabama-Georgia final, similar to the SEC fatigue after the 2011 season ended with a BCS championship game between LSU and Alabama that led to the creation of the CFP in the first place.
