Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz proposes a wild 30-team College Football Playoff, plus his thoughts on the SEC schedule.
Mizzou Head Coach Eli Drinkwitz Pitches 30-Team College Football Playoff originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz isn’t afraid to shake things up, and this week, he floated one of the boldest ideas yet: a 30-team College Football Playoff.
“Now you’re talking about an opportunity for 30 teams, 30 fanbases to be excited and engaged—engaged in giving revenue,” Drinkwitz said. “You’ve got 30 teams with players who have access to compete for a championship.”
The proposal includes play-in games and reflects what he called a more fan-focused approach to the sport’s future. He even endorsed a Big Ten-style model with automatic bids and play-in games, though he admitted the idea might not earn him much love from SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey.
Drinkwitz stirred the drink with a lot of thoughts on the playoff and an 8/9-game SEC schedule. Basically, Drink likes the Big Ten-favored model of 4-4-2-2-1 automatic bids as a vehicle for involving more teams via play-in games.
— Pat Forde (@ByPatForde) July 17, 2025
But Drinkwitz’s ideas to challenge the current system didn’t stop there.
Amid ongoing debate over whether the SEC should stick with an eight-game conference schedule or expand to nine, the Mizzou head coach made his stance clear.
“If it’s about the fans, nine games. If it’s about coach preservation — and I get it — stay at eight,” he said. He added bluntly, “We ain’t getting in [the playoff] with eight.”
According to ESPN, the SEC has the toughest strength of schedule in the nation, with all 16 teams ranked inside the top 20. Ironically, Missouri enters the 2025 season with the easiest schedule in the league.
Still, Drinkwitz is focused on the bigger picture—making college football more exciting and accessible for fans. Whether it’s wildly expanding the playoff or adding an extra SEC matchup, he’s not afraid to speak up and challenge the norm.
Related: 'Best of' Mizzou Head Coach Eli Drinkwitz From SEC Media Days
Related: Mizzou QB Reveals He Was Originally Recruited as a Free Safety
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: General Sports
