Nick Saban cut right through the noise on Friday, calling the new 24-team college football playoff a flat-out bad idea. The legendary former Alabama coach told fans on the “New Heights” podcast that the field is simply too crowded, making it clear he believes this massive expansion hurts the game way more than it helps.
Money Talks, Tradition Walks
Saban didn’t pull any punches while talking to the Kelce brothers about the changes hitting college football next season. When Travis Kelce asked him the blunt question, “So what is the reason to actually do it?” the answer came quick. Jason Kelce immediately shot back with, “Money.” Saban agreed, but he quickly warned fans about the steep cost of chasing that cash.
He hates the idea of losing the SEC championship game, saying it means so much to the players and the fans. That tradition is a huge deal for the league, and it is a venue people absolutely love. The problem? New rules mean those conference title games are likely going bye-bye to make space for the expanded playoff. It is a tough pill to swallow when you consider what those games mean.
And guess what? This deal is already moving. The College Football Playoff issued a statement on Friday afternoon confirming, “A formal agreement between the CFP and ESPN regarding future media rights in connection with potential expansion is in the final stages of review by the CFP.” Translation: despite complaints from coaches like Saban, this thing is happening.
Too Much Football, Not Enough Focus
For Saban, the core issue goes beyond just tradition, it hits the players hard. He argued that even the current system already stretches players too thin with extra games. He knows this firsthand, noting his teams played 15 games three times, and he thought that was already way too many. Now, this new plan piles on even more pressure without actually making the competition better. Saban believes the best teams will still win, but everyone else? They are just playing for cash.
Think about the grind. If those conference titles stuck around, a team could be looking at 18 contests just to reach the national championship. Dropping the title games helps a little, allowing playoffs to start earlier and capping the total number of games at 17. But even then, Saban feels 17 games is “still too much” for college athletes to handle.
He thinks a 12-team or even 16-team format would have worked just fine. He called the 12-team version a “good tournament,” even if a few teams that probably shouldn’t have been in got selected. The SEC already runs a nine-game schedule, matching other power conferences. Now, with the new rules, Big Ten squads must face a power opponent in a non-conference matchup. This also forces teams to play tougher opponents without the safety net of a conference title game, because Saban believes the pride in winning a conference championship matters more than just tossing weak teams into a huge bracket.
He’s convinced political pressure to make the field bigger led to a flawed plan. For Saban, 24 teams is just too many if you are looking for a true national championship race. He believes the game is losing something vital by chasing dollars and sacrificing tradition and player well-being.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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