Tag: Sports

Bigger is not always better. Why further College Football Playoff expansion would be detrimental

~ Grady Leatherwood ~ Leave a comment
Photo by Grady Leatherwood
The 2021 Georgia Bulldogs celebrate their national championship after winning the CFP

Following the implementation of the College Football Playoff (CFP) in 2014 to determine the national champion, the system has faced frequent scrutiny from players, coaches, fans, athletic directors and the media. Originating as a four-team playoff, the flaws in the system were fatally exposed during the 2023 season, in which the undefeated Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) champion Florida State Seminoles were left out for the Southeastern Conference (SEC) champion Alabama Crimson Tide, who had one loss. Immediately following the season, the CFP was expanded to include 12 teams and the top five highest-ranked conference champions.

However, the system once again came under fire during the 2025 edition, when the selection committee left out the one-loss Notre Dame Fighting Irish while three-loss Alabama made the field.

“It should be 16 teams in my opinion,” Pete Bevacqua, the athletic director at Notre Dame, said. “It creates more opportunity, more narratives around schools and yet it preserves the integrity and importance of the regular season.”

Bevacqua is not the only one calling for expansion of the current format. The Big Ten Conference and Fox Sports have come out as staunch supporters of a 24-team playoff. “We feel strongly about it, and we’re working really hard with our colleagues and the other conferences,” Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti said. Petitti’s push has been supported by all members of his conference, in addition to the ACC and Big 12 Conference.

However, Petitti’s push for a 24-team College Football Playoff would be detrimental to the college football regular season, as well as bowl games.

In a 24-team playoff, teams with several losses would be included in the field, rewarding, rather than punishing, teams for losing. Brad Crawford of CBS Sports published an article showing what a potential 24-team playoff would’ve looked like for the 2025 season. His scenario includes Iowa, who finished the regular season with an 8-4 record, equating to losing a third of games played. Rewarding Iowa with a playoff berth would significantly diminish the importance of games during the regular season.

Big games during the regular season would feel less important because their playoff implications would be nonexistent. The rivalry between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Michigan Wolverines is one of the most iconic and fierce in all of sports. Michigan entered their 2025 matchup with Ohio State needing to win to keep any playoff hopes alive. The increased playoff stakes of the game added extra fuel to the burning rivalry. In a world with a 24-team playoff, Michigan would’ve been safely in the field of the playoffs, and the game’s significance would’ve been greatly abated.

Photo by Grady Leatherwood
Kirby Smart, 2022

Additionally, a 24-team playoff would ruin bowl games. After missing the playoffs in 2025, Notre Dame opted to skip a bowl game in protest of missing the playoffs. As a team, we’ve decided to withdraw our name for consideration for a bowl game following the 2025 season,” the team announced. “We appreciate all the support from our families and fans, and we’re hoping to bring the 12th national title to South Bend in 2026.”

Expanding the field to 24 teams would make bowl games feel even more like a participation trophy rather than a reward for a successful season. “I think those bowl games are great experiences. I played in them, I’ve coached in them, I love them, that’s an opportunity,” said Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart. “But the more teams you give an opportunity to decide things on the field, like you do, whether it’s college basketball, high school football, old 1-AA football back when they had the playoff.”

While Smart advocates for the importance of bowl games, he supports playoff expansion in the name of inclusion. However, Smart compares playoff expansion to the NCAA tournament in college basketball, known for upsets. However, basketball has more parity between the top tier and lower end teams. Because basketball teams have smaller rosters and the game is more volatile, it is more likely for upsets to occur. In two seasons of the 12-team College Football Playoff so far, Group of Six conference teams have yet to be competitive in games.

As a die-hard fan of college football, more football is usually better. However, expanding the playoffs would diminish the quality of games and result in a poorer product.

Currently, the 2026 edition of the College Football Playoff will feature 12 teams for the third straight year.

Tiffany Harris

~ htiffany970 ~ Leave a comment

Getting to know an only child is very easy because you are asking them about their most favorite topic ever — themselves! While I could be very detailed and tell you that I’m a Leo, in a STEAM program, Georgia Merit student, or how the time I fell off of my bike and smashed my bacon burger created one of my most cherished friendships ever, I can just give you a little insight.

I am from a city right on the edge of Los Angeles — Inglewood, California. After my parents split, my mom decided to move us across country, which was the end of the world to 7-year-old me. My mom promised me a bike to ease the pain. That same bike is the one to blame for the smashed burger incident, but that gave me a best friend so it wasn’t to bad (minus the huge scar and a missing chunk of my left elbow).

With that same best friend, we both tried out for a volleyball club, and that started one of my favorite hobbies. I’ve been a middle blocker ever since that day and wouldn’t change it. Outside of volleyball you can find me reading outside on a hot day because I love the feeling of sun on my skin, or inside my own world listening to music through my Beats. I’m a huge sports fan, especially football. I absolutely adore Friday night lights, every little thing about it. From the theme-matching outfits, constant screaming for joy, the majestical sounds from the band, to the post-game debriefs at Waffle House with your friends. My mom told me to find a job in doing what I love and what’s more cooler than getting to cover athletes and sports all over the world, which is why I fell in love with sports journalism. I knew I wouldn’t play volleyball in college but I still wanted to stay connected to the athletic lifestyle — or at least get first-hand info about it.

Being on my own does have some draw-backs from time to time but it also leaves me with time to figure out what to say when I’m asked “Who are you?” . The fun part is that being so young, you can never have a finished answer to that question, which means I can do what I do best — always talk about myself!

Karmen Morrison

~ Karmen Morrison ~ Leave a comment

By: Karmen Morrison

A Jacksonville, Florida native, a women’s sports advocate and a concert frequenter are a few things that make me who I am. This past spring I received my Master of Arts degree from the University of Georgia after two years of culminating projects, writing and research. Before my time at UGA, I got my bachelor’s degree from Florida State University, go noles!

I was unsure of what I wanted to do and had very little interest in anything until my senior year of high school. ” I was a scholar athlete and that came with many interviews that year about school and athletics. I had a lot of fun doing those interviews and then it hit me, can I do this for a living? It was fun being the interviewee and FSU taught me how to be the interviewer. During my time at FSU, I was able to get my feet wet, learn the basics and hone in on the skills of a multimedia journalist. Never did I think I would pursue a master’s degree until I realized I needed to learn more and needed more experience.

While at UGA, I was a graduate assistant for a course called Reporting I where I gained real-world experience in a multitude of areas. I served as a liaison between instructors and students, helped facilitate classes and workshops, brainstormed and implemented new learning activities and aided instructors in various ways. My time at UGA has allowed me to develop production skills, evolve as a journalist, form new relationships and create various types of content I am proud of.

Outside of school, my favorite sport is basketball. My all-time favorite basketball players are LeBron James and Candace Parker. I enjoy watching press conferences, I love listening to music and I am a huge advocate for the representation of women in sports and women’s sports.

Joshua Crawley

~ jkcrawley1 ~ Leave a comment

When people ask me about who I am, I usually don’t know what to say. I could say I’m a soccer player, An athlete, a student, a brother, a runner, a reader and writer, a child of god, a volunteer, or a referee. I could say all these things and many more, but I never feel like that alone can show people who I really am. I am 16 years old going into my junior year at Johns Creek High School. I am amazing and I have everything and more.

My soccer journey started as an adventurous 7 year old that was drawn to soccer. From playing recreational soccer for fun to now playing on a team that travels out of state for games and tournaments nationally, I have come a long way. I became a captain of my club soccer team Atlanta Fire United, played for my high school soccer team, and played in high profile matches in North Carolina and Orlando. Playing soccer got me into refereeing. Part of me just felt like I wanted to get a job, and a part of me wanted to get a job with something I would truly enjoy. I have refereed for about a half year now, and have learned to enjoy everything that comes with it. The crazy screaming parents and coaches along with the occasional fracas on the field are something I have embraced and become entertained by. Cross country was something I recently got into to help me as a runner and an athlete and also to meet new people. Anyways, that’s basically the athletic part of me, but there’s still so much more that encompasses me.

“At my Fathers house, there’s a place for me, I’m a child of God, yes I am.” These are the lyrics of a song we sing at church and as I have progressed forward in my understanding and relationship with God, this couldn’t be more true. Since joining North Point Church a year and a half ago, I have met so many amazing people and grown so much in my faith. From summer retreats to Daytona Beach, to weekends with my brothers in Christ, to Sunday afternoons together, I don’t take any of it for granted. I am a brother to two, and one of the things I have tried to do with my brothers is help them get closer to God as well. My younger brothers mean the world to me and I love them so much. ‘

I do great in the classroom. I get good grades and am a member of different clubs. I’m going to go to an amazing college one day. I am an A student and an avid reader and writer. I am a part of Beta Club which does volunteer work in the school and community. I joined that club for the volunteer hours and recognition initially, but it is something I now find joy in and willingly do. Writing is something that I feel came to me at an early age. I remember once writing a narrative in my fifth grade class, and my teacher later telling me that it was one of the best in the class and that I had a talent for it. I have enjoyed writing a lot and see it as a way to express myself. A career in writing is something I will eventually look to pursue, but nothing is set in stone yet.

My experiences and things I’ve done in this life don’t quite define me or tell my full story, but it gives you an idea of what I’m all about. As I continue to move forward in my life, I will add new things to my palette and grow into an even more amazing person, with a greater story to tell.