SBJ College: CFP wraps first expanded edition amid questions about future

Dan Corso almost blends into the background amid the white jumpsuits of Notre Dame’s towering roster.

Corso, president of the Atlanta Sports Council, had a hand in just about everything. The lights. The cameras. The action. You get the picture. 

"For the CFP to select us to host, it is a great honor," Corso told SBJ. "If the sport and the city were to go hand-in-hand, you won't find a better combination than college football in Atlanta. I think you're seeing that this weekend.”

Atlanta became the first city in the CFP's 12-year history to host the national title game twice after its first appearance here in 2018. The official announcement of that distinction is now two years past, back when the field had just four teams and the college football ecosystem had only semi-recently emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic -- not to mention the myriad legal challenges and lawsuits that litter the system today.

Corso notes there were varying adjustments to be made when the field expanded to 12 teams beginning this year -- hotels, convention space, etc. Still, for a city that has hosted everything from the Olympics to Super Bowls to Final Fours, there’s an ease about navigating the craziness that comes with an event on the scale of the CFP national title game.

“To have all of that time in between [when Atlanta was first given its bid] and this weekend, working closely with the CFP and their nearly 30 people on staff month after month, week after week and day after day, to be at this point is really, really exciting,” Corso said.

Notre Dame has had its share of things to cheer about this fall.

A CFP title game berth. Hosting the first ever on-campus playoff game. That's exciting stuff. As head coach Marcus Freeman said after the opening round win over Indiana, there aren’t many firsts that you get to be a part of at a place with the tradition of Notre Dame.

Now, Irish eyes look toward the future.

Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua, a member of the CFP Management Committee, has done plenty in his short time in charge in South Bend to move the athletic department into the new world order that’s likely to come if the House settlement is approved -- and he’s not slowing down.

“As you can imagine, we’re focused on this [the CFP title game] and digesting all of that,” Bevacqua told SBJ on Saturday. “We’re having conversations literally around the clock. Just like everybody else we'll be ready to move forward depending on what the rules of engagement are.”

Notre Dame continues to occupy a unique space in the college football ecosystem. As an independent, it netted $20 million via its performance in the CFP that it doesn’t have to share with its conference.

Bevacqua has been adamant the school remain independent -- and with the financial incentives that this playoff run have brought, you can see why.  That also relates to the future format of the CFP (more on that below). 

Notre Dame technically isn’t eligible for a first-round bye under the terms of the deal the CFP configured ahead of this year’s 12-team debut. But as the Fighting Irish prepare to play for a national title, Bevacqua wasn't exactly shy to say the value proposition has worked out.

“We're comfortable that if conference championship games continue as they're currently configured, part of the deal we made is that we wouldn't get a bye and that's understandable," Bevacqua told a larger group of reporters during CFP media day on Saturday. "And I, quite frankly, wouldn't trade that Indiana game at Notre Dame Stadium for anything in the world."

College football’s most prominent decision makers met on Sunday, but offered little clarity on the future of the postseason. The 10 FBS commissioners, Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua and the CFP Board of Managers wrapped their meetings in Atlanta with few headlines.

If anything, the day was a chance to digest the 12-team playoff ahead of its conclusion tonight and turn sights toward what might come regarding changes to the format, potential expansion and more.

“We're gonna meet in February, but I think all of us across the board feel that it created the excitement and fan engagement that we were all looking for,” Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark told SBJ.  “I always like to say we're happy, but not satisfied. You have to probably refine some things in an effort to get better, but generally speaking, it was very successful, and the numbers are great — both the attendance and ratings.”

CFP Executive Director Rich Clark noted there was some discussion around sponsorship with the new ESPN deal that kicks in for the 2026 season, a ticket pricing review, along with choosing new members for next year’s CFP Selection Committee (He didn’t reveal who had been chosen as they’ve yet to be notified).

Next comes larger discussions over the coming months as to what the CFP might look like as it relates to potential changes to the byes, a possible look at expanding to 14 or 16 teams or even whether the Big Ten and/or SEC might push for automatic qualifiers in some capacity.

“I really believe that's when we're going to dig in,” ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips said of the group’s scheduled February meeting. “The championship will be over. We'll dig in on format. We'll talk about seeding. We'll talk about all of those kinds of things.”

• Here is a round-by-round breakdown of CFP viewership to date, courtesy of my audience-minded colleague Austin Karp: First round (10.6 million); quarterfinals (16.9 million) and semifinals (19.2 million viewers). The championship game, notes Karp, is all but certain to be ESPN's most-watched programming of 2025.

• The 12-team CFP worked well in 2025, including upsets and controversy. When is change coming? I dug into the angles. What went well this year? What could change? What would the cost be? Who’s calling the shots? What’s next in the timeline? 

• In college stadium construction work, $2.4 billion is expected to be completed this year, nearly double the 2024 spend and a half-billion dollars higher than the previous record, set in 2023, reports SBJ's David Broughton. But the record won’t last long, as spending in that niche is projected to top $3 billion in 2026.

• Clemson is hiring Hawks SVP/Global Partnerships Michael Drake as CEO of Clemson Ventures. Drake spent the last seven years with the Hawks and in varying capacities in and around the Atlanta sports scene, including as the Falcons’ SVP & Chief Revenue Officer for Business Operations.