Working draft

A National Structure for College Football

Beginning with the 2027 season, the College Football Playoff expands from 12 teams to 24, and its selection committee fills 20 of those berths from its own ranking. This proposal reorganizes the top level of the sport as one competition with a common schedule, a playoff field set by final standings, and a single commission for player pay, officiating and television.

Pacific
Mountain
Southwest
Plains
North
Central
Appalachian
Carolinas
Deep South
Southeast

Tier 1: 60 programs in ten regional divisions.

CompetitionSixty programs play in ten divisions of six. Each division faces a common set of opponents, and final standings fill all 24 playoff berths.
PlayersA collectively bargained national scale sets school pay by position and class year. Playoff revenue funds team bonuses and individual awards.
CommissionA commission owned by the member schools employs every official, sells the television rights to every game and distributes revenue in equal shares.
60
Tier 1 member programs
10
regional divisions of six
12
regular-season games per team
24
playoff berths, awarded on final standings

Background

College football has operated without a central competition authority since its founding, and it has selected its national champion by vote for most of that time.

Selection of the national champion Each format enlarged the field and retained selection by vote.

Through 1997
PollsThe champion was the team ranked first in the final polls of sportswriters and coaches.
1998 to 2013
2 teamsA formula combining the polls with computer rankings selected two teams for a title game.
2014 to 2023
4 teamsA 13-member committee selected the field.
2024 to 2026
12 teamsCommittee selection.
From 2027
24 teamsCommittee ranking fills 20 berths.

Changes since 2021

Athlete pay

Athletes may be paid, first by third parties from 2021 and directly by their schools since 2025.

Transfers

Athletes may transfer without sitting out a season.

Realignment

The Big Ten and SEC added six members from the Pac-12 and Big 12 in 2024.

Concentration of results and talent

23 of 40

berths in the four-team playoff, 2014 through 2023, went to four programs.

6

programs have won every SEC championship since 1992, 34 in total.

3

programs have won every SEC championship since 2014: Alabama seven times, Georgia four and LSU once.

49 to 39

five-star recruits on the three most talented rosters in 2021 and in 2026.

60.5%

of 2026 NFL draft picks came from current Big Ten and SEC members, compared with 47.5% in 2010.

Roster talent is less concentrated in individual programs than in 2021 and more concentrated in two conferences. Big Ten and SEC programs signed between 66% and 76% of the top 50 transfers in each year since 2022.

Current system

Under the format approved on November 9, 2026, the selection committee's ranking determines 20 of 24 playoff berths, the first-round byes and the home sites.

Allocation of the 24 berths

4 berths to the champions of the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC20 berths determined by the committee's ranking: 19 at-large and one for the highest-ranked team from the other six conferences

The committee keeps its members' ballots confidential. It has released no formula for the record-strength metric it adopted in 2025 or for the conference-strength adjustment it adopted in 2026.

The regular season supplies few results between conferences. Teams in the four largest conferences average 0.92 regular-season games a year against opponents from another of the four.

20 of 24

playoff berths determined by the committee's ranking.

0.92

regular-season games per team, per year, against another of the four largest conferences.

122 of 149

cross-conference pairs of teams with identical records, 2014 through 2025, in which the committee ranked the SEC team higher.

0 of 59

identical-record pairs in which the committee ranked a team outside the four largest conferences above a team inside them.

Wins over ranked opponents

Selection debates commonly cite a team's wins over ranked opponents. The count depends on which teams the rankings already include. Through November 8, 2026, SEC teams had recorded 22 wins over ranked opponents, 21 of them against other SEC teams. Measured by wins over opponents with winning records, the SEC's margin over the Big Ten in the same period falls from approximately 2.5 times to 1.1 times.

Division of responsibility today

Selection

A 13-member committee ranks teams in closed session and fills 20 of 24 playoff berths from that ranking.

Scheduling

Each conference sets its members' schedules. Members of the same conference play different opponents.

Officiating

Each conference hires, trains, grades and assigns its own officials and operates its own replay center.

Compensation

A national cap limits each school's payments to athletes to $21.6 million for 2026-27. Each school negotiates individually with each player beneath the cap.

Television

Five conference and playoff contracts divide the games among several networks. Watching a full Saturday requires several subscriptions.

Governance

The NCAA writes the playing rules, the conferences control schedules and officials, and a company owned by the conferences operates the playoff.

Fan and media opinion

Forum users opposing a 24-team playofflargest college football forum, users who stated a position
76.6%
Media accounts opposing the 24-team formataccounts that stated a position
65.2%
Media accounts supporting the 12-team formataccounts that stated a position
72.4%

Sources appear in the evidence file under Models. Forum opposition is the same among fans of SEC teams and fans of other teams. Media figures are drawn from a general sentiment scrape of posts by 600 media accounts on X. Language models classified the posts without human review. The figures indicate general sentiment across a sample of accounts and establish no individual's position.

Proposed structure

The proposal organizes 138 programs into two tiers, each with a common schedule format and a playoff seeded from final standings.

Tier 1

60 programs admitted on competitive results and financial capacity. Members withdraw from their conferences in football.
10regional divisions of six
12games: five in the division, six against a paired division, one against Tier 2
24playoff berths: ten division winners and 14 at-large teams
5playoff rounds, the first two at campus sites

Tier 2

78 programs that remain in conferences and compete for a separate national championship.
7conferences, each with an even number of members
12games, including one against a Tier 1 opponent where scheduled
16playoff berths: seven conference champions and nine at-large teams
4playoff rounds, the first two at campus sites

Scheduling

Each Tier 1 team plays one Tier 2 opponent per season.

Revenue

Tier 1 pays 10% of its television revenue to Tier 2 each year.

Promotion

A membership review every four years allows up to four Tier 2 programs to replace Tier 1 members, each through a single deciding game.

Defined terms

Division
A group of six Tier 1 programs in one region. Divisions replace conferences in football.
Paired division
The division whose six members a given division plays in a season. Pairings rotate annually.
Outside game
A Tier 1 team's one game per season against a Tier 2 opponent.
At-large berth
One of 14 playoff berths awarded to the teams with the best records among those that did not win a division.
Tiebreak procedure
The seven criteria, applied in fixed order, that rank teams with identical records.
Equal share
The annual distribution of pooled television revenue, identical for every Tier 1 member.

Tier 1 membership and divisions

Membership is limited to programs able to compete at the top level on an equal share of television revenue.

An eligibility index scores all 138 programs on revenue generated by the athletic department, attendance and television audience, competitive results, and roster talent. The 60 members were then fixed by ranking programs on results over the last five seasons. Houston, Wake Forest and Duke qualify on results while falling below one current minimum for revenue or attendance. Those minimums reflect income under the present unequal contracts, and each of the three has four years to meet them.

Divisions follow geography to limit travel. Forty-one of the 66 traditional rivalries among members fall within a division and are played annually. The remaining 25 are played in seasons when the two divisions are paired. The figure beside each program is its five-season rank among the 60.

Members by 2026 conference

SEC 15
Big Ten 15
Big 12 15
ACC 13
2

Other: Notre Dame and Boise State.

Ten divisions

Pacific

Oregon5
Washington16
USC29
Arizona State33
UCLA40
Arizona46

Mountain

BYU14
Utah18
Boise State21
Texas Tech22
Colorado56
Nebraska58

Southwest

Texas7
Oklahoma12
SMU13
TCU20
Texas A&M24
Baylor41

Plains

Kansas State23
Missouri26
Houston30
Oklahoma State36
Iowa State38
Arkansas48

North

Notre Dame6
Penn State10
Iowa17
Illinois37
Minnesota43
Wisconsin51

Central

Ohio State2
Michigan4
Indiana15
Cincinnati28
Michigan State45
Purdue60

Appalachian

Pittsburgh31
Louisville34
Kentucky42
Virginia47
West Virginia54
Virginia Tech59

Carolinas

Clemson9
NC State27
South Carolina35
Wake Forest39
Duke44
North Carolina52

Deep South

Alabama3
Ole Miss8
Tennessee11
LSU25
Mississippi State49
Auburn57

Southeast

Georgia1
Miami19
Florida State32
UCF50
Georgia Tech53
Florida55

Schedule

Each Tier 1 team plays 12 games over 14 weeks against opponents fixed by its division.

Composition of a 12-game schedule

5 division games
6 paired-division games
1
Division: the other five members, every yearPaired division: all six members, three home and three awayOne Tier 2 opponent

The six teams in a division face the same paired-division opponents, and their records are directly comparable. Division pairings rotate annually, and each division meets every other division once in nine seasons.

Week 1

Opening weekend on Labor Day weekend: ten games between Tier 1 teams over five days. Week 1 is the first playing date of the season.

Weeks 1 and 2

Outside games. The 20 teams in opening-weekend games play their Tier 2 opponent in week 2. The other 40 play theirs in week 1.

Weeks 2 to 8

Six games against the paired division and one open date.

Weeks 9 to 14

Five division games and one open date. Division play closes the regular season, and the playoff follows directly.

Opening weekend, 2027 schedule Thursday before Labor Day through the holiday Monday, one week before the NFL season begins.

Thursday
7:00 p.m. Eastern
Clemson
Pittsburgh home
9:30 p.m. Eastern
Oklahoma
Washington home
Friday
7:00 p.m. Eastern
BYU
Kansas State home
9:30 p.m. Eastern
SMU
USC home
Saturday
3:30 p.m. Eastern
Georgia
Notre Dame home
8:00 p.m. Eastern
Alabama
Ohio State home
Sunday
3:30 p.m. Eastern
Miami
Penn State home
7:30 p.m. Eastern
Tennessee
Indiana home
Monday
3:30 p.m. Eastern
Ole Miss
Michigan home
8:00 p.m. Eastern
Texas
Oregon home

The ten games are the strongest matchups, measured by five-season results, among that year's paired divisions. The other 40 Tier 1 teams play their outside games on the same weekend, including traditional rivalries with Tier 2 programs.

Sample team schedule: Ohio State, 2027 Central division, paired with the Deep South division.

Week 1
Alabama
Home
Week 2
Tier 2
Tier 2 opponent
Home
Week 3
Ole Miss
Away
Week 4
Tennessee
Home
Week 5
LSU
Away
Week 6
Open
Week 7
Mississippi State
Home
Week 8
Auburn
Away
Week 9
Purdue
Home
Week 10
Michigan State
Away
Week 11
Open
Week 12
Cincinnati
Home
Week 13
Indiana
Home
Week 14
Michigan
Away
Paired divisionDivisionTier 2

Thursday and Friday games

Two games are scheduled each Thursday night and two each Friday night. A team is eligible only if its previous game kicked off by 3:30 p.m. Eastern on Saturday or it had the previous week open. Each team is limited to one Thursday game and one Friday game per season.

Scheduling office

A central scheduling office builds all 60 schedules and assigns every kickoff time. Each conference and its television partners perform these functions separately today.

Playoff

Final regular-season standings determine all 24 playoff berths and seeds.

The ten division winners qualify automatically. The 14 at-large berths go to the teams with the best records among the remaining 50. All 12 games count toward a team's record.

The eight division winners with the best records receive seeds 1 through 8 and a first-round bye. The other two division winners receive seeds 9 and 10 and host first-round games. At-large teams receive seeds 11 through 24.

Rounds

First roundSeeds 9 through 24. The higher seed hosts.Campus sites
Round of 16First-round winners travel to seeds 1 through 8.Campus sites
QuarterfinalsFour games.Neutral sites
SemifinalsTwo games.Neutral sites
ChampionshipThe bracket is fixed when the field is set.Neutral site

Tiebreak procedure Applied in sequence to teams with identical records until one step separates them.

  1. RecordWins and losses in all 12 games.
  2. Head-to-headResult of the game between the tied teams.
  3. Wins over winning teamsWins over Tier 1 opponents that finished above .500.
  4. Strength of victoryCombined record of the Tier 1 opponents defeated.
  5. Paired-division recordRecord in the six paired-division games.
  6. Points allowedFewest points allowed in Tier 1 games.
  7. Coin tossA recorded random draw.

Sample field One computer-simulated 2027 season on the sample schedule, presented as an illustration. The best record in the simulation is 11-1.

SeedTeamDivisionRecordQualification
1AlabamaDeep South11-1Division winner, bye
2Notre DameNorth11-1Division winner, bye
3GeorgiaSoutheast11-1Division winner, bye
4UtahMountain10-2Division winner, bye
5OregonPacific10-2Division winner, bye
6TexasSouthwest10-2Division winner, bye
7MichiganCentral10-2Division winner, bye
8ClemsonCarolinas9-3Division winner, bye
9LouisvilleAppalachian8-4Division winner
10Kansas StatePlains8-4Division winner
11Ole MissDeep South10-2At-large
12Ohio StateCentral10-2At-large
SeedTeamDivisionRecordQualification
13Penn StateNorth9-3At-large
14ArkansasPlains8-4At-large
15PittsburghAppalachian8-4At-large
16TCUSouthwest8-4At-large
17Texas A&MSouthwest8-4At-large
18MiamiSoutheast8-4At-large
19IowaNorth8-4At-large
20OklahomaSouthwest8-4At-large
21BYUMountain7-5At-large
22HoustonPlains7-5At-large
23TennesseeDeep South7-5At-large
24NC StateCarolinas7-5At-large

Sample first round

16TCU
17Texas A&M
Winner plays at No. 1 Alabama
15Pittsburgh
18Miami
Winner plays at No. 2 Notre Dame
14Arkansas
19Iowa
Winner plays at No. 3 Georgia
13Penn State
20Oklahoma
Winner plays at No. 4 Utah
12Ohio State
21BYU
Winner plays at No. 5 Oregon
11Ole Miss
22Houston
Winner plays at No. 6 Texas
10Kansas State
23Tennessee
Winner plays at No. 7 Michigan
9Louisville
24NC State
Winner plays at No. 8 Clemson

Tier 2

The 78 Tier 2 programs remain in conferences, compete in a 16-team national playoff and may earn promotion through a membership review held every four years.

Tier 2 programs receive an annual share of Tier 1 television revenue and one game per season against a Tier 1 opponent. Ten programs lose their conference affiliation when the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC cease to sponsor football: nine current members of those conferences outside the 60, and UConn, an independent.

Seven of the ten form a new conference with Army, Navy and Massachusetts. California and Stanford rejoin the Pac-12, and Kansas joins the American. Each of the seven conferences has an even number of members, which allows every member to play each week.

New academic conference 10

Armyfrom American
Boston Collegefrom ACC
Marylandfrom Big Ten
Massachusettsfrom MAC
Navyfrom American
Northwesternfrom Big Ten
Rutgersfrom Big Ten
Syracusefrom ACC
UConnfrom Independent
Vanderbiltfrom SEC

American 14

Kansasfrom Big 12
Texas Statefrom Pac-12
Charlotte
East Carolina
Florida Atlantic
Memphis
North Texas
Rice
South Florida
Temple
Tulane
Tulsa
UAB
UTSA

Sun Belt 14

App State
Arkansas State
Coastal Carolina
Georgia Southern
Georgia State
James Madison
Louisiana
Louisiana Tech
Marshall
Old Dominion
South Alabama
Southern Miss
Troy
UL Monroe

Mid-American 12

Akron
Ball State
Bowling Green
Buffalo
Central Michigan
Eastern Michigan
Kent State
Miami (OH)
Ohio
Sacramento State
Toledo
Western Michigan

Mountain West 10

Air Force
Hawai'i
Nevada
New Mexico
North Dakota State
Northern Illinois
San José State
UNLV
UTEP
Wyoming

Conference USA 10

Delaware
Florida International
Jacksonville State
Kennesaw State
Liberty
Middle Tennessee
Missouri State
New Mexico State
Sam Houston
Western Kentucky

Pac-12 8

Californiafrom ACC
Stanfordfrom ACC
Colorado State
Fresno State
Oregon State
San Diego State
Utah State
Washington State

Programs that change conference under the proposal are listed first, with their 2026 conference. The Football Championship Subdivision and its playoff are unchanged.

$6.4M

paid annually to each Tier 2 program from Tier 1 television revenue in the base case.

$572M

in annual contracted revenue to the nine programs leaving the four largest conferences, an average of $63.5 million each.

1.5x

annual contracted revenue, paid once to each of the nine when Tier 1 forms. A cap limits the portion that may fund player compensation.

Tier 2 playoff
Field16 teams: seven conference champions and nine at-large teams
SelectionFinal standings and a published tiebreak procedure
SeedingChampions seeded 1 through 7; at-large teams 8 through 16; all 16 play in the first round
SitesCampus sites for the first round and quarterfinals; neutral sites for the semifinals and final
CalendarFour rounds, scheduled in the same weeks as the Tier 1 playoff in separate time slots
Membership review (proposed)
FrequencyEvery four years; up to four places
Member under reviewA member ranked in the bottom four on four-year record with a winning percentage below .300
ChallengerOne of the four best Tier 2 programs on four-year record that meets the attendance and revenue minimums
DecisionA single game at the member's stadium; the winner holds the place for four years
DistributionA promoted program receives 50%, 75% and 100% of an equal share over three years; a relegated program receives 50% and 25% over two years

Television

The Commission sells the rights to every Tier 1 game and sets every kickoff time.

Each conference currently sells its own rights, and each network schedules the games it holds. Under the proposal, a central scheduling office staffed by former network programmers assigns all games. Staggered kickoffs bring a group of games to the fourth quarter approximately every 90 minutes.

Ownership of all rights also supports a live channel that switches among games in progress and a single subscription carrying every game.

Sample Saturday: lead games, week 14 of the 2027 schedule Seven kickoff times, Eastern. One game at each time is the lead game for national distribution.

12:00
9:00 a.m. Pacific
at
Georgia
at Miami
2:00
11:00 a.m. Pacific
at
Texas
at Oklahoma
3:30
12:30 p.m. Pacific
at
Alabama
at Ole Miss
5:00
2:00 p.m. Pacific
at
Notre Dame
at Penn State
6:30
3:30 p.m. Pacific
at
Oregon
at Washington
8:00
5:00 p.m. Pacific
at
Ohio State
at Michigan
10:00
7:00 p.m. Pacific
at
BYU
at Utah

This Saturday has 26 games. Games other than the lead games use the same seven kickoff times on regional channels.

Thursday night
7:00 p.m.BayloratSMU
9:30 p.m.Arizona StateatUCLA
Friday night
7:00 p.m.PurdueatIndiana
9:30 p.m.Texas TechatColorado

Existing contracts

Each current rights holder retains the number and quality of games it has purchased, drawn from the new schedule, through the end of its contract. The contracts expire between 2029-30 and 2036.

Sale of rights at expiry

As each contract expires, its games are sold in separate packages: three principal Saturday time slots, the remaining Saturday slots, Thursday, Friday and the playoff. The Commission targets four or five rights holders with staggered contract terms.

Regional channels

The three existing conference channels convert to four regional channels (West, Central, South and East) that carry all games other than lead games. Their current network owners remain as partners.

Networks carrying games in 2026

ESPNABCFOX SPORTSFS1CBS SPORTSNBC SPORTSTNT SPORTSTHE CW

Network marks are the property of their owners and appear for identification.

Player compensation

A collectively bargained national scale sets school pay by position and class year, supplemented by bonuses for retention, academics, team results and individual honors.

Schools may pay athletes directly up to a national cap of $21.6 million per school for 2026-27, covering all sports. Pay beneath the cap is set by individual negotiation. The proposed scale sets a base salary for each position and class year and an annual increase for each year a player remains at the same school.

Starter pay on the scale falls between the 75th and 90th percentile of current school pay at each position. A 105-player roster on the scale costs $15.3 million at the 75th percentile and $20.3 million at the 90th. The scale governs school pay and leaves third-party endorsement agreements unrestricted.

Starter pay by position

Starter
$0 to $1.7 million
School pay on the scale
Est. total, all sources
Quarterback
$675,000 to $1,611,000
$1M to $3M
Offensive line
$312,500 to $512,000
$400,000 to $1.2M
Defensive line
$309,500 to $509,500
$500,000 to $1.2M
Wide receiver
$247,000 to $456,000
$400,000 to $1M
Linebacker
$246,500 to $425,500
$300,000 to $700,000
Defensive back
$250,000 to $416,000
$300,000 to $900,000
Running back
$236,000 to $383,000
$300,000 to $800,000
Tight end
$199,000 to $300,000
$300,000 to $600,000

Current pay: the typical player and the largest agreements

Published reports of multi-million-dollar agreements describe a small number of players. Of 367 quarterbacks on rosters in the four largest conferences in 2026, half received $75,000 or less from their schools and one in four received nothing. School pay at the 90th percentile was $1,266,500. Median school pay at the other positions ranged from $50,000 to $105,000.

The largest reported agreements exceed the 90th percentile at quarterback by two to six times. Under the proposal, school pay for these players follows the scale. Income above the scale comes from third-party agreements and from the national awards below.

25th percentileschool pay, quarterbacks
$0
Medianschool pay, quarterbacks
$75,000
75th percentileschool pay, quarterbacks
$350,000
90th percentileschool pay, quarterbacks
$1,266,500
Colin SimmonsEdge, Texas. Published valuation, September 2026
$2.5M
Jeremiah SmithReceiver, Ohio State. Published valuation, September 2026
$5.0M
Kamario TaylorQuarterback, Mississippi State. Reported 2027 agreement, November 2026
$7.5M

Percentiles: College Sports Commission report on school payments in calendar year 2026, all rostered quarterbacks at ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC schools. Individual figures are published valuations or press reports of total annual compensation and have not been confirmed by the schools.

$21.6M

cap on one school's payments to athletes in 2026-27, all sports.

$172M

annual national player pool, which funds team bonuses and individual awards.

School-paid bonuses

$5,980 a year for a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher, $2,500 for 40 verified hours of community service, and an annual increase for continuous service at the same school.

Legal basis

An agreement among schools to fix player pay violates antitrust law. A scale negotiated with a certified players' union is exempt, as in professional leagues. College football players have yet to certify a union.

Team bonuses and individual awards Paid from the national player pool, which is funded from playoff television revenue ahead of distributions to schools.

Team resultPer player
Each regular-season win$500
Division title$10,000
Reaching the playoff$15,000
First-round win, or a bye$15,000
Round of 16 win$20,000
Quarterfinal win$25,000
Semifinal win$35,000
Championship game win$50,000

Each rostered player receives the full team bonus. A national champion with an 11-1 regular-season record earns $175,500 per player.

A player who earns more than one individual award receives the largest. The national awards are presented by their own sponsoring organizations, which continue to select the winners; the Commission pays the bonus. Head coaches in each division select All-Division teams and may vote only for players on other teams. All-Division teams replace all-conference teams. Amounts are proposed.

AwardRecognizesBonus
Heisman TrophyMost outstanding player$2,500,000
Maxwell AwardPlayer of the year$1,500,000
Walter Camp AwardPlayer of the year$1,500,000
Chuck Bednarik AwardDefensive player of the year$1,000,000
Bronko Nagurski TrophyDefensive player of the year$1,000,000
Heisman Trophy finalistEach other player invited to the ceremony$500,000
Davey O'Brien AwardQuarterback$500,000
Doak Walker AwardRunning back$500,000
Biletnikoff AwardReceiver$500,000
John Mackey AwardTight end$500,000
Outland TrophyInterior lineman$500,000
Rimington TrophyCenter$500,000
Lombardi AwardLineman$500,000
AwardRecognizesBonus
Ted Hendricks AwardDefensive end$500,000
Butkus AwardLinebacker$500,000
Jim Thorpe AwardDefensive back$500,000
Lou Groza AwardKicker$500,000
Ray Guy AwardPunter$500,000
Paul Hornung AwardMost versatile player$500,000
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm AwardUpperclass quarterback$500,000
William V. Campbell TrophyScholar-athlete$250,000
Wuerffel TrophyCommunity service$250,000
All-AmericaFirst, second and third team$150,000, $75,000 and $40,000
All-DivisionFirst team to honorable mention$25,000 down to $5,000
Academic All-AmericaFirst team$25,000

Officiating and game standards

A single organization employs all officials, conducts all replay review and enforces common game-day standards.

Each conference currently employs its own officials and operates its own replay center. The proposal transfers both functions to an officiating organization owned by the Commission and sets uniform requirements for broadcast cameras, player availability reporting, medical coverage and wagering integrity.

288

officials, hired, trained, graded and assigned centrally.

34

crews, assigned independent of any conference or region.

42

replay officials in a single replay center that decides every review.

$152M

annual cost at 60 members, or $2.5 million per member, with $115 million in initial capital.

Cameras

Each stadium provides the same minimum set of camera angles for replay.

Availability reports

Each team reports unavailable players on a common form and weekly schedule.

Medical

Independent medical spotters attend every game, and a single concussion protocol applies.

Wagering integrity

A central program monitors wagering on every game and audits each member.

Finance

The Commission pools all Tier 1 television revenue, deducts shared costs and distributes the balance to members in equal shares beginning with the first season.

Television rights for the 60 members are contracted at approximately $4.4 billion a year under five conference and playoff agreements that pay members unequal amounts. The distribution model tests three revenue cases for a combined sale. The base case assumes combined revenue of $4.95 billion, 13% above current contracts.

Base case, annual $ millions

Pooled television revenue
4,953
Officiating and game standards
(152)
National player pool
(172)
Commission operations (2.5%)
(124)
Tier 2 payment (10%)
(495)
Distributable revenue
4,010
$58.3M

equal share per member at current contract revenue.

$66.8M

equal share per member in the base case.

$71.4M

equal share per member in the high case.

Equal shares before the last contract expires

Equal distribution begins in the first season and requires no contract to end. From 2029 each conference agreement continues to be performed with games from the new schedule, its payments are assigned to the Commission, and the Commission distributes the pooled total in equal shares. The pool begins at the current contract total and rises as each package is resold.

The ACC agreement runs longest, through the 2035 season, and is the smallest of the five at $240 million a year for regular-season football. Holding it at its contract price until expiry lowers the base-case pool by approximately $52 million a year, less than $1 million per member. ESPN holds both the SEC and ACC agreements, and the Commission would seek to reprice the ACC games when the SEC package is sold for 2034.

2027
2028
2029
2030
2031
2032
2033
2034
2035
2036
Big Ten$1,150 million a year. Fox, CBS, NBC
Big 12$380 million a year. ESPN, Fox
College Football Playoff$1,645 million a year. ESPN
SEC$710 million a year. ESPN
ACC$240 million a year. ESPN
Current conference structureContract performed with Tier 1 games; payments pooledRights resold by the Commission

Transition guarantee Each member receives at least its current contract revenue for the first five seasons.

2029 seasonequal share $58.3M
$636M
2030 seasonequal share $61.9M
$528M
2031 seasonequal share $63.1M
$492M
2032 seasonequal share $63.9M
$469M
2033 seasonequal share $63.9M
$469M

Estimates. Each member's current contract revenue is held flat, and the base-case increase is apportioned to each contract in proportion to its value and recognized when that contract is resold.

Cost of the guarantee

30 members currently receive more than an equal share. Guaranteeing their present revenue costs approximately $636 million in the 2029 season and $469 million in 2033, or $2.6 billion over five seasons.

Financing

The Commission funds the guarantee and the $857 million in exit payments to the nine departing programs with a credit facility of approximately $3.5 billion secured by television contracts. The Commission retains all equity.

The Commission

A nonprofit corporation owned by the 60 member schools governs Tier 1. An independent commissioner runs seven offices, and independent panels decide all disputes.

Member institutions60 schools. Each holds one vote and one equal share. Conferences hold no ownership.
Special memberAn independent trust of three trustees with no vote on ordinary business. Its consent is required to change the distribution formula, the membership standard and other entrenched provisions.
Board of directors21 voting directors who oversee and do not operate: 7 presidents and chancellors, 4 administrators, 5 independent directors and 5 player directors. Four-year staggered terms with a two-term limit. No sitting athletic director, coach or conference employee may serve.
Officers reporting to the boardGeneral counsel, chief standards auditor, and an ombudsman for players and officials.
CommissionerIndependent chief executive of the Commission, its commercial company and the Management Council. Five-year term, renewable once. Holds no financial interest in a member, conference, media partner, agency or betting operator.
Independent adjudicationJudicial Panel, Appeals Board and a 72-hour competition panel. The commissioner decides no case.
Competition and SchedulingMembership licensing, schedules, standings, tiebreaks, playing rules and certification of playoff qualifiers.
Officiating and ReplayAssignment, grading and public reports for all officials; the replay center; the stadium camera standard.
Compliance and EnforcementCap accounting, the pay scale, clearance of third-party agreements, investigations and charging decisions.
Player RelationsThe standard player agreement, grievances, benefits, medical standards and the availability report.
IntegrityWagering monitoring, screening of prohibited bettors, mandatory reporting and referrals.
Finance and DistributionTreasury, the standards assessment, the national player pool, equal distribution and audited statements.
MediaRights sales through Commission Enterprises, production and access standards, sponsorship, data and group licensing.

Affiliated entities

Commission Enterprises, LLC (working name)

A commercial company owned by the Commission. It holds each member's grant of media and commercial rights, sells them and pays the net proceeds to the Commission for distribution. Any outside capital enters here as a non-voting interest.

College Football Officials

A wholly owned subsidiary that employs all 288 officials and 42 replay officials. An oversight committee of the board, with no sitting athletic director or coach, controls appointments and discipline.

Management Council

A multi-employer association of the 60 members, staffed by the Player Relations office. It is the members' exclusive bargaining agent and signs the collective agreement with the players' association.

Decision rights Members vote only on reserved matters. All other decisions belong to the board and the commissioner.

DecisionDecided byVotes required of 60
Election of directors; appointment of the auditorMembers, majority31
Ratification of the commissioner's appointmentBoard, two thirds, then members, two thirds40
Schedule rotation, tiebreak procedure and playoff qualification procedureMembers, two thirds; effective no sooner than the following season40
Ratification of a collective bargaining agreementMembers, two thirds40
Media agreements longer than five years or above 10% of annual central revenueBoard, two thirds, and members, two thirds40
Admission, relegation or removal of a member; change in the number of members or divisionsMembers, three quarters45
Outside investment in Commission Enterprises; debt above 1.0 times annual central revenueBoard, two thirds, and members, three quarters45
Change to the distribution formulaMembers, five sixths, with the special member's consent50
Annual budget; appointment of the heads of officiating, compliance and integrityBoard, two thirds14 of 21
Fines on a member up to $1 million per violation; postponement or relocation of gamesCommissioner, subject to appeal
Enforcement cases and penalties above the commissioner's limitsJudicial Panel; appeal to the Appeals Board within 30 days
Protests of standings, tiebreaks and playoff qualificationThree-person competition panel, within 72 hours

Board committees

Audit

Independent directors only. Oversees the Integrity office and the audited statements.

Nominating and governance

Independent chair. Conducts the commissioner search and proposes director slates.

Officiating oversight

No sitting athletic director or coach. Appoints and disciplines the head of officiating.

Compliance

Decides case matters brought by the Compliance and Enforcement office.

Competition

Schedule format, playing rules and playoff procedure.

Player health and welfare

Player directors and the independent director with medical expertise.

Finance

Budget, treasury and distribution.

Labor

Institutional and administrator directors. Sets the bargaining mandate. Player directors are recused.

Implementation timeline

The proposal provides a two-season preparation period and a first season in 2029, with equal revenue shares from that season.

2027The Commission is chartered. The 60 members and ten divisions are designated. Negotiations open with player representatives and rights holders.
2027 and 2028 seasonsCurrent conferences continue to operate. Central officiating, the replay center and the scheduling office begin serving all conferences. The pay scale is bargained.
2029 seasonFirst Tier 1 season and first 16-team Tier 2 playoff. Equal shares begin, with the five-season guarantee. Exit payments to the nine departing programs.
2030 to 2034Rights are resold as contracts expire: Big Ten for 2030, Big 12 for 2031, the playoff for 2032 and the SEC for 2034.
2032 seasonFirst membership review.
2036The ACC agreement, the last to expire, ends and its games are resold.

Conditions to a 2029 start

Legal authority

Current law prohibits schools from pooling television rights or agreeing on player pay. The proposal requires a collective bargaining agreement with a certified players' union or an act of Congress.

Rights holder consent

Current contracts specify games between conference members. Substituting games of equivalent number and quality from the new schedule, and assigning payments to the Commission, requires the consent of each rights holder and conference.

Playoff consent

The 24-team playoff is under contract through the 2031 season. A change to the selection method requires approval from the conferences that own the playoff and from its broadcaster.

The start date moves later if any condition remains unmet.

Models

Four spreadsheet models and one research file support the figures on this page. All spreadsheet inputs are editable.

Program eligibility indexScores 138 programs on revenue, support, results and talent and ranks them for membership.
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Media distribution modelPools current television contracts, deducts shared costs and compares each member's equal share with its present contract revenue.
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Player compensation modelPrices a 105-player roster on the pay scale with bonuses and awards and tests the total against the cap.
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Uniform standards cost modelEstimates the cost of central officiating, replay and common game standards by game.
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The evidence fileResearch supporting the Background and Current system sections, with a source for each figure.
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