Big Ten's Tony Petitti stumps for 24-team CFP, says 16 hard no - ESPN

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, Calif. — In a rare meeting with reporters Tuesday at the Big Ten spring meetings, commissioner Tony Petitti gave his first extensive public comments in support of a 24-team College Football Playoff model, making it clear the league has no interest in pursuing a 16-team format.

If the SEC doesn't pivot from its 16-team preference and support the Big Ten's proposed model, Petitti said the Big Ten will take a hard no stance on 16 for 2027 and beyond.

«We've had zero conversation about 16,» he said. «Plan B is what we have now. We would stay with what we have now.»

For the current 12-team model to change, the Big Ten and the SEC have to agree on the format. The SEC will hold its spring meetings in Destin, Florida, next week, and some coaches and athletic directors have spoken in favor of a 24-team field, but commissioner Greg Sankey and the league's presidents and chancellors have continued to favor 16 — at least for now.

For almost an hour Tuesday evening, Petitti spoke with a small group of reporters in a conference room at the posh Terranea Resort about a variety of weighty issues facing college athletics, from the involvement of Congress and the White House to NIL and the overall football calendar.

No topic loomed larger, though, than the future of the CFP.

The Big Ten has been buzzing about a 24-team field since an internal document was circulated among league leaders in February, but Petitti's reasoning behind it has filtered out largely through sources and coaches willing to opine on the topic. On Tuesday, Petitti answered every question he was asked about it, but he repeatedly circled back to one main point: access.

«When I was at [Major League] baseball, we never had to convince anybody that