On Monday, the College Football Playoff Management Committee finalized a deal with ESPN to expand the College Football Playoff to 24 teams.

The change comes just three seasons after the CFP moved to 12 teams, but this time it brings even more changes to the sport.

Monday marked the death of the conference championship game in each of the Power Four conferences. The Group of Six can keep theirs if they please, but a few conferences have already announced they will end theirs as well.

The 24-team format will include five automatic bids to the four Power Four conference champions — how that will be decided is still unknown — and the highest-ranked Group of Six team. The College Football Playoff selection committee will decide the other 19 spots by at-large bids.

In the 12-team format, the Nittany Lions made the CFP once in 2024 and reached the semifinal. Had the 24-team format been in place since 2016, however, Penn State would have made the tournament seven times based on historical rankings.

As college football makes another historic change, two of our staffers debated whether the new playoff system will benefit Penn State enough to outweigh the loss of college football’s spine.

Holden Mostofsky: The New Playoff System Benefits Penn State

Before I dive into Penn State, I think the new playoff system benefits every college team.

With NIL, the transfer portal, and constant recruitment flips, college football is basically set up like the NFL. Players are signing to teams that pay the most, which has spread the talent more evenly across the country than ever before.

With college football essentially using a free-agency setup now, teams not typically considered powerhouses can suddenly become elite. The point is, going undefeated isn’t expected anymore. Any team can now win on any given Saturday and anyone who’s been watching college football this year has noticed.

While there are still undefeated teams in the 2026 season — UCLA and Utah — I think parity in college football will keep rising. We’re in a system that shouldn’t punish teams with two or three losses.

As for Penn State, this system is very beneficial.

The Nittany Lions haven’t had an undefeated season since 1994. Historically, they haven’t beaten the best of the best, so even with a few losses, a talented Penn State team still has a chance to turn things around and compete for a championship.

Based on previous-season calculations, Penn State made the playoffs in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Saying that playoff expansion wouldn’t help the Nittany Lions is simply statistically inaccurate.

No matter how upset you are, you can’t change the path college football has taken. In Penn State’s case, the program needs a playoff expansion, as the school lags behind Oregon, Ohio State, Notre Dame, and others in NIL.

As Penn State rebuilds, the team won’t be elite immediately. But the Nittany Lions could be strong enough to sneak into the playoffs, which at least makes the season look more accomplished.

The Nittany Lions will often have opportunities to compete for a championship under the new rules.

Zach Paulhamus: The New Playoff System Does Not Benefit Penn State

I’m not in favor of expanding the College Football Playoff to 24 teams, and I don’t think it’s a good move for Penn State or college football as a whole.

One of the best things about college football is how much the regular season matters. One bad loss can change everything. With 24 teams making the playoffs, I feel like we’re losing that.

Let’s use Penn State as an example. For years, this program has struggled to win its biggest games.

Now, the Nittany Lions could lose multiple games against top Big Ten opponents and still make the playoffs. Sure, that’s great for getting into the postseason and competing for a national championship, but what does it really prove?

Getting rid of conference championship games makes it even worse. Teams spend an entire season fighting for a chance to win their conference, and now we’re taking that away to make room for more playoff games.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to see another playoff game at Beaver Stadium. But do we really need 24 teams to make that happen?

Penn State doesn’t need an easier path to the playoff. It needs to start winning the games that matter.

More playoff football doesn’t automatically mean better college football.

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