MAC commissioner Jon Steinbrecher, a member of the College Football Playoff Management Committee, sent a memo to his conference athletic directors disputing reports that the CFP has agreed in principle to a new television deal, sources told CBS Sports' Dennis Dodd. In the memo, Steinbrecher notes the committee has yet to even review a draft of a new deal.
"There was nothing that was said that was put in front of these people [commissioners] at all," said a person familiar with the talks.
Last week, the College Football Playoff reportedly came to terms with ESPN on a six-year contract extension worth a total of $7.8 billion. The playoff still has two years remaining on its current deal with ESPN with the network holding rights to first-round, quarterfinal, semifinal and championship games for the 12-team playoff, which will make its debut following the 2024 regular season.
This reported extension came with a caveat that the full deal would not be complete until CFP leaders can decide on a new format for the 12-team model. Following the Pac-12's dissolution amid conference realignment, some prominent figures have pushed for a 5+7 model rather than the current agreed upon 6+6 model. The 5+7 model would decrease the number of automatic conference championship bids by one while adding an extra slot for at-large qualifiers.
According to Dodd, the CFP Management Committee met on Jan. 8 -- the day of Michigan's College Football Playoff National Championship win -- to adopt a new model; however, the Pac-12, with Washington State president Kirk Schulz as its representative, asked to delay the vote.
The management committee is scheduled to convene again on Feb. 20 to vote on the 5+7 model. Schulz will also ask CFP leaders ahead of the meeting to maintain the Pac-12's status as a power conference in regards to revenue rights and voting powers. That proposal would take effect in 2026, which marks the start of any new television contract.
"We've been an Autonomy Five school and have resourced ourselves at that level for 25-30 years," Schulz told Yahoo Sports. "Just because we were left standing in musical chairs, we just don't feel that we should be relegated by no fault of our own."
