College football fans, it's time to make your voices heard—and Josh Pate is leading the charge. The popular analyst is urging everyone to push back against the proposed 24-team College Football Playoff expansion, insisting it's not too late to stop what he calls one of the "most unpopular proposals" in the sport's history.
As the momentum for a larger playoff grows, the SEC and ESPN appear to be driving the conversation. Conferences, coaches, and even some commentators are rallying around a 24-team framework that would add another round, feature more on-campus games, and eliminate automatic bids. But Pate isn't buying it.
On a recent episode of his show, Pate explained why he remains optimistic that fan backlash can change the course of the sport. "I understand a lot of you do not exist in the weeds here," he said. "It can start to seem like one by one, a lot of these real big-name-brand entities and these powerful people speak out in favor of 24. It just seems inevitable that we’re headed toward 24."
But here's the key: as decision-makers prepare for a critical meeting among CFP executives next month in Denver, Pate believes cracks are forming in their resolve. "There comes a time you eventually have to sell this to the broader public," he noted. "And it’s collectively like five minutes before this happens, there’s this awareness of, 'Oh crap man, we’ve got to dress this up as a football issue, we’ve got to dress this up as if it’s in the best interest of the game.'"
Recently, conference commissioners and network executives have stumbled through public explanations for why a 24-team bracket is necessary. Many of their arguments focus on aspects of college football that weren't broken until the past few years of upheaval. For example, Fox Sports' Eric Shanks recently claimed that an expanded playoff would rejuvenate early-season non-conference competition—a problem that barely existed before realignment shook the sport.
As one of the loudest voices pushing back, Pate is clear: these are not strong-willed people. With enough push from fans, the proposal could still be derailed. So gear up, speak out, and remind the powers that be that college football belongs to the fans—not just the boardrooms.