Overview

• During a four-hour session in Rosemont, the management committee spent roughly 20 minutes on the future playoff format.
• Executive director Rich Clark said stakeholders are comfortable staying at 12 teams for 2026 if no broader agreement materializes.
• There is no additional full-committee meeting scheduled before Dec. 1, with commissioners set to continue discussions in smaller groups.
• Any format change requires Big Ten–SEC agreement under a memorandum that gives those leagues decisive authority.
• Options discussed include 16-, 24- and 28-team models, with the Big Ten favoring more automatic qualifiers and the SEC preferring 5 automatics plus 11 at-large bids.