I've heard an argument that expansion isn't so much about competition but about maintaining and building awareness for non-blue bloods.

As it is now, if you're not in the Top 6 annually, no one cares about your program. Schools that bubble up are talked about in the context of them missing out on the Playoff rather than the outstanding play of the school.

Like, take UC, for instance. Nearly losing last week is framed as them being unworthy of the Playoff. No one is pointing to their potential as an ascending program. Or the accomplishment of finishing undefeated (if they do).

And if they don't make it, I don't think they will receive the level of attention and praise that they deserve for getting this far as a G5 program. The Playoff will define their season, whether they make it or not. While that would be great if they make it, it would be a shame that their season is looked at in any way other than a complete success.

Even though it has more teams involved in the Playoff than the BCS, I think the current system has made fans more entitled. They all view their team as lacking if they're not a top-four school.

I'm a big Mizzou fan. Unfortunately, we will likely never make it to the four-team Playoff like we only were on the skirts of the BCS the one year in '08. But if Mizzou finished in the top 10 one year and made the Playoff, we'd eat off that season for a decade. Whereas now, the fan base would maybe feel more dismayed because we couldn't crack the top 4.

Maybe expanding to 12 adds to the fuel for fan entitlement, but at least more fan bases get satisfaction at the end of the year.

It could work out well for excellent games too. For example, you could give the top 4 teams byes and then let the remaining eight play in a first round. I imagine some of the games would be wildly competitive. We all like the first couple of rounds of March Madness, even though 75% of the games don't feature likely championship-worthy schools. The CFP could be similar.