The Illinois head coach, Bret Bielema, told On3 that more programs deserve a postseason opportunity. This push comes as Big Ten officials weigh a move to a 24-team format.

Bielema recently sat down with Pete Nakos of On3 to share his views on it.

"That’s what I’m trying to be a proponent for — just give more teams an opportunity to get where they need to be," said the Illinois Fighting Illini coach.

Bielema said he would prefer expansion "humanly possible." He mentioned 64 isn't possible, but the number of 32 teams has caught his attention, a number he says was discussed last year. He feels the number of teams will be good for the playoffs.

He also said, "I don’t want to have a team that is 10-2 get eliminated," referring to two years ago, when Illinois was on the cusp of cracking the CFP. They got a bowl game win over South Carolina and a 10-3 record.

Bret Bielema and the AFCA board recently proposed scheduling changes for college football.

Regarding this, Bielema said, "The part that was overwhelming to me, over the last two months, was how much all conferences were in favor of it — and when I say that, I’m talking about football coaches."

Their suggestions included shifting to a single bye week, ending conference championship games, setting a minimum six-day break between matchups, and creating future playoff formats with more teams involved.

Bielema believes expanding the field is the logical next step for the sport. The Big Ten, in fact, is quite keen about this move up to 24 teams.

Big Ten Commissioner Pushes For 24 Team CFP Expansion

The Big Ten commissioner, Tony Petitti, is determined to push for a 24-team CFP expansion. According to ON3, Petitti has made it clear that the conference is pushing for a 24-team format.

Though the SEC has not yet signed off on the move to 24. This is expected to be a top topic in next week's meeting at Destin, Florida.

Bret Bielema speaks highly of Petitti and his knowledge, and also praises SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey.

"In my experience, these two guys are at the highest level of leadership I’ve seen at the conference level," said Bielema. "They’re both very well-versed, have a lot of background, and a lot of different experiences.”

As of now, the team is continuing with its 12-team format. This might continue until and unless the commissioners sign off on a change before the Dec. 1 deadline.

Written by

Sourav Ganguly

Edited by

Rudra Dubey