News struck the college football world on Thursday when it was announced that the College Football Playoff was set to expand to 24 teams starting in 2027. There wasn't an official announcement, and while some I's need to be dotted and T's need to be crossed — it's as close to a done deal as possible.
As you can imagine, it was met with some positive remarks, but mostly negative. Why? It ruins what was so sacred about this sport — the regular season. One loss used to ruin your chances of winning a national title. Every Saturday meant something and every game was a must-win game.
Now, college football is turning into a minor league system of the NFL. There is free agency every year — yes, that's what the transfer portal is with NIL. And now, teams can lose three or four games and still make the playoff starting in 2027.
The blue bloods of the sport should never miss a 24-team playoff and Michigan should be considered in that discussion, despite having a poor start to the 2026 season. The 24-team expansion has also brought along other scenarios being considered.
Should Michigan go Notre Dame's route?
Notre Dame has done its own thing forever. The Irish are one of the few independent teams out there, and while Notre Dame has an agreement to play ACC schools in football, the Irish can essentially schedule whoever they want, whenever they want. Plus, they have one of the most lucrative media deals with NBC, which is a large reason they don't want to join a conference.
With the playoff set to expand to 24 teams, college football analyst Dan Wetzel wonders if this is the beginning of teams going the independent route, and he zeroed in on Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State from the Big Ten.
"College athletics is terrible at seeing problems around the corner. The 24-team playoff is the latest example," Wetzel said.
"..Notre Dame now has the best situation in all of football - almost 100 percent guarantee to make the playoff, freedom to schedule as it wishes, maximization of its own media value. To use the Big Ten as an example, why wouldn't Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State follow? If you can, be independent. That's the future.
"The 18-team Big Ten is bloated, distant and winning it carries little intrinsic or competitive value for the biggest brands. Those three schools can create a scheduling agreement that would increase their media revenue 2-3x and give the same control over everything. No sharing money. No forced TV times. Eight or even nine home games. Select your own schedule."
Pros and cons of leaving the Big Ten
The pros are pretty self-explanatory. A program like Michigan would garner significant media deals if it left the Big Ten and went independent. Networks like NBC, CBS, and FOX would all be bidding to land Michigan. The Wolverines are one of the most-watched teams in both football and basketball and they would have no issues landing somewhere.
Then there is the schedule. Teams will have to choose how they want to schedule from here on out. If you're in a conference, you're going to have eight or nine in-conference games against some top teams. That might make you want to schedule easier non-conference opponents to secure early wins. But being an independent — you choose how you schedule.
With the 24-team playoff, there won't be any more conference championship games, so Michigan wouldn't be losing out on that.
Possible cons
But there are also cons to this idea. One, you're basing this decision on football and maybe basketball. Michigan has several other sports and you might be affecting the status of those sports if you left the Big Ten, which is arguably the best conference in the country.
The other factor that some might not be thinking about is having a voice in rule changes. Michigan is among the top Big Ten programs and the Wolverines certainly have a voice when the Big Ten gets together to discuss rule changes. Even with the NCAA. Big Ten commissioner Tony Petiti will speak with all the Big Ten schools — some likely having more say than others — and take the concerns or requests to the NCAA.
Going independent would mean losing allies that have been created and as we've come to know, there are rules changing drastically every single season.
Going independent is a neat theory and something fans can agree or disagree on, but the likelihood of this happening feels slim to none. Michigan is among the biggest voices in the Big Ten and has security. Not sure the Wolverines are going to risk that with all the changes happening in college football.
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