ACC supports 24-team CFP model gives 'hope' to all teams - ESPN

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — ACC commissioner Jim Phillips backed a 24-team expanded College Football Playoff format on Wednesday, a move supported by the majority of league's coaches and athletics directors.

The Big Ten initially proposed the 24-team model, and it has started to gain traction as the discussions about expanding the playoff have moved forward. Though there was no consensus on an expanded playoff field when the CFP spring meetings concluded last month, Phillips believes that greater access to the playoff is vital for the long term.

«When you're leaving national championship contending teams out of the playoff, you don't have the right number,» Phillips said. «We suffered through it with Florida State when the field was four, and I know other schools have suffered for it, and I've said this very directly. Notre Dame was a CFP-worthy team this year.

»If you're going to ask presidents and chancellors and boards to continue to invest in their football programs, it's really important that they have hope, that they have an opportunity at the beginning of the season to get into the playoff."

There remains work to be done. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey remains in favor of a 16-team playoff. Ultimately, the Big Ten and SEC must be unanimous in deciding what the future playoff format will be.

From the perspective of ACC coaches, there are obvious benefits.

«Our current playoff is perfect for the mid-'90s, when we had small conferences,» Duke coach Manny Diaz said. «Look at what we've done now. We have huge conferences, where everybody can't play everybody within a conference. We're going to nine conference games, which means that there's less inter-conference action, so you can't tell is the third team in this league better