Oklahoma State head coach Eric Morris said he hadn't thought about it. Cornerback LaDainian Fields said he doesn't like looking into the future. At least Malik Charles had somewhat of an opinion.
The college football world became polarized last weekend when ESPN and the College Football Playoff agreed in principle for the network to carry the remaining games of an expanded 24-team playoff. Nothing is final yet and there are still more negotiations to be had. But it was the next significant step in the playoff moving from its current 12-team format to a 24-team format.
It's a format that would have benefited Oklahoma State had it been adopted when the four-team playoff was implemented in 2014. Per 247 Sports (subscription required), the Cowboys would have made the playoff six times under former head coach Mike Gundy if the 24-team format had started then. That would have been the second-most playoff berths of any current Big 12 team.
Charles was the one who was most willing to have an opinion, per Will Thorogood of the O’Colly.
Malik Charles on 24-Team Playoff
The senior defensive end said he could see both sides of the argument but ultimately came down on the side of the current format.
“I have mixed feelings on that,” Charles said. “Like it could be almost a March Madness argument you can make and that’s cool. But I also feel like the 12-team playoff makes it more important for you to win, you know what I'm saying? If we’re in the Top 25, we have a chance, like you’re basically going to be in the playoffs. But if you cut it down to 12 now it’s like, ‘Oh man, we gotta actually win,’ like it means a lot more being in the 12-team than the 24-team in my opinion.”
If all parties come to an agreement, the 24-team playoff would begin in 2027. The format currently being discussed is one in which the champions of the four power conferences, including the Big 12, would get an automatic berth, along with the highest ranked team from the Group of 6 conferences. The other 19 teams would be at-large bids selected by the CFP committee.
First- and second-round games would be hosted on campus. While Morris didn't express a preference over the size of the playoff, he did indicate that hosting a playoff game would be a significant boost to any team that had the opportunity to do so.
“I do think having on-campus playoff type atmospheres — I can just imagine Stillwater, you know, playing at home and the energy around this place in a playoff game like that fires me up without thinking too deep into it right there,” Morris said.
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