Overview
- SEC commissioner Greg Sankey and CFP Board chair Mark Keenum publicly reiterated opposition to automatic qualifiers for future formats.
- Big Ten leadership continues to advocate larger brackets with guaranteed conference slots, with reported proposals reaching roughly 24–28 teams.
- Last week’s losses by projected AQ placeholders and the absence of a Group of Five team in the top 25 are being cited by SEC officials to argue against reserved bids.
- Talks show little movement toward compromise, and Sankey acknowledged a stalemate as conferences remain far apart on field size and selection rules.
- The CFP releases its second Top 25 on Tuesday night, as the committee applies the updated seeding rule that grants byes to teams ranked Nos. 1–4.