This past May, Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) commissioner Jim Phillips said he believed that more teams in College Football's postseason playoff is important for the future.

"When you're leaving national-championship-contending teams out of the playoff, you don't have the right number," Phillips said. "We suffered through it with Florida State when the field was four, and I know other schools have suffered for it, and I've said this very directly. Notre Dame was a CFP-worthy team this year. "

Now, nearly five months after Phillips' comments, an expanded College Football Playoff format is likely on the way.

ESPN's Pete Thamel is reporting that the College Football Playoff is "nearing a deal" to expand to 24 teams starting a soon as the 2027 season.  

According to Thamel, the 24-team format will "come together in the near future, pending approvals". The 12-team playoff format will stay in tact this current college football season.  Any changes to the 2027 format would have to be approved by Dec. 1.

The exact details of what the field would look like has still yet to be officially announced. A potential bracket would likely feature the top 8 teams getting a bye into the second round. The remaining 16 teams would play in the opening round and the winners would advance to the Round of 16. 

One additional change that could come as a result of all this? The elimination of conference title games. The Power Four conferences (ACC, Big Ten, Big XII, SEC) would likely eliminate their conference title games and reward their regular season champion an automatic berth to the field.

The breakdown of how independent schools like Notre Dame, along with if any conferences are guaranteed a certain number of automatic berths into the future playoff format, has not yet been finalized. 

Since joining the ACC in 2013, the Orange have had only two double-digit win seasons and two Top-25 finishes. Despite some success, Syracuse has never been selected to participate in the College Football Playoff.

More teams means more opportunities for schools to compete for a national championship. Since adopting the College Football Playoff format in 2014, the NCAA has used four and 12-team formats.

If the field was at 24 teams in 2018 or 2024, Syracuse would have had a chance to compete for a national title. SU and its fans should welcome the opportunity to get to do that.

The hope is that with a larger field and being a member of a Power Four conference, Syracuse's chances of getting a bid has at least increased. That possibility should keep fans engaged throughout the season and should help the program stay relevant each year.

The Orange will return to Central New York and play the team's first home game in over a month. Syracuse hosts Louisville inside the JMA Wireless Dome. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. SyracuseRoundtable will have coverage on site and following the Saturday evening contest. 

Louisville is coming off a win against Florida State.