We're just one year into the 12-team College Football Playoff era, and already, another expansion is earning serious momentum as the CFP Committee looks to the future of the sport.
Most recently, a 16-team bracket was proposed that would have a set number of bids for each conference; the SEC and Big Ten receiving four each, the ACC and Big 12 receiving two each, and the Group of Six receiving just one bid, with three at large bids still on the table for anyone.
Reportedly, with the Big Ten and SEC receiving more bids, the two conferences could have play-in games (similar to the preexisting structure): the third seed versus sixth seed and the fourth seed versus fifth seed.
The expanded CFP was supposed to give more teams a chance
The entire point of the expanded playoff bracket was to give more teams, like Boise State and Arizona State in last year's CFPs, a chance at contending for the title, especially those from conferences that aren't the two powerhouses of the SEC and Big Ten.
Giving conferences a set number of bids directly negates that entire initiative, especially with the notion of only giving one automatic bid to a group of six program.
Sure, the SEC would benefit because a quarter of the conference would immediately earn a spot in the Playoffs, which could help the Longhorns. However, further shifting the narrative toward the SEC and the Big Ten only further divides the world of college football, which is already on the brink of disaster to begin with.
The Longhorns have already struggled enough in the CFPs
To agitate Texas fans, just a little bit, about the notion of a further expanded playoff bracket: Keep in mind that Texas has yet to even make it to the CFP Championship game.
In the Horns' first playoff berth just two years ago, Texas lost in the semifinals (which was then the first round) in a blaze of glory. Similarly, last year, the Longhorns lost to the eventual National Champions, the Ohio State Buckeyes, in the semifinals after eking out a win over Arizona State in the quarterfinals.
Adding the possibility of yet another round of the Horns to fight through would make achieving the ultimate goal of a national title that much more difficult, possibly keeping Texas fans waiting even longer for the highly coveted CFP trophy.