ESPN is expected to extend its deadline for the College Football Playoff to determine if it will make any changes to the playoff format for 2026 and beyond, sources said Monday.
With the initial deadline of Dec. 1 rapidly approaching and no decision in sight, the 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua will be given more time to see if Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey can reach an agreement on the future format.
If not -- and they have been at a stalemate for months -- they have both said publicly the current 12-team format can remain in place for another season.
Under the new six-year agreement, which begins in 2026, the Big Ten and SEC have the bulk of control over the future format -- something the other commissioners and Notre Dame agreed to during those negotiations. Earlier this month, the Power 4 commissioners met in Charlotte, where Petitti explained the reasoning behind the Big Ten's push for a 24-team format that would include automatic qualifiers.
One possible model that has been considered is four guaranteed spots for each of the Power 4 conferences, two for what will become the Group of 6 when the new-look Pac-12 begins, and six at-large bids for the selection committee to determine.
This past spring, following the SEC's annual meetings in Destin, Florida, there was overwhelming support from the majority of FBS commissioners and Notre Dame for a 16-team playoff that would include the five highest-ranked conference champions and 11 at-large teams.
"I think we had some pretty good ideas around 14-16," Sankey told reporters before Alabama faced LSU on Nov. 8. "There's obviously more ideas. I've been amazingly consistent since this move from four to something else started to say I'm not a fan of AQs, if you will."
One CFP source told ESPN that the Big Ten's idea "has some merit," but that "there's a lot of work that needs to be done."
The deadline extension to decide will be after the Dec. 7 Selection Day show, which will give CFP leaders a second season of results in the current 12-team format to react to and inform their decision.
Earlier this month, Mississippi State president Mark Keenum, who is the chairman of the CFP's Board of Managers, was blunt in his comments about the SEC's position.
"I'm not a big fan of automatic qualifiers," Keenum said on "The Paul Finebaum Show" on Saturday. "I think the best teams ought to play in our nation's national tournament to determine who our national champion in college football is going to be and not have automatic bids. That's the position of the Southeastern Conference -- presidents and chancellors, our commissioner, and probably most of the conferences that are part of the CFP."
Another in-person meeting isn't expected until the national championship game, where the CFP Board of Managers and its management committee have their annual meeting. The Board of Managers includes the 11 presidents and chancellors who have the ultimate authority over the CFP. The management committee includes the 10 FBS commissioners and Bevacqua.