ACC Commissioner Says CFP Bracket Expansion Will Be 'Difficult' To Pass This Year

Expanding the College Football Playoff to 16 teams remains a hot topic entering the 2025 season, but it doesn't sound like that move will become official anytime soon.

Per Bryan Fischer of Sports Illustrated, ACC commissioner Jim Phillips discussed the potential CFP expansion on Tuesday and said, "It will be difficult to push it through this year."

The CFP will stick with the 12-team model that was introduced prior to the 2024 season for the 2025 campaign. However, there has been continued interest in expanding the field for 2026 and beyond.

ESPN's Heather Dinich reported in May that a 16-team CFP model featuring the top five conference champions and 11 at-large teams was "gaining traction" following the SEC spring meetings. The SEC and Big Ten, college football's biggest conferences, have been leading the push for expansion but haven't agreed on how the 16-team field would be selected.

Phillips added that the ACC would welcome expansion as well, but he also said he's content with the current structure.

"We have a really good playoff right now, it's the five and seven model. I'm open to five and nine, five and 11," Phillips said.

While the "five and 11" model seems to be the most viable solution, the Big Ten is still not on board. ESPN's Dan Wetzel reported that the Big Ten "will not back such a proposal until the SEC agrees to play nine conference games," increasing from its eight-game conference schedule. The conference instead "wants a 16-team system that gives four automatic bids apiece to the Big Ten and SEC, two each to the ACC and Big 12, one to the Group of 6 and then three at-large spots."

It's clear that it will take a lot more time to sort things out before the CFP field increases once again.