Ohio State, Michigan Have Responded To Mike Greenberg's Concerns

ESPN host Mike Greenberg's recent rant about Michigan and Ohio State gained so much traction that one of the schools responded to him this Wednesday.

During last Tuesday's episode of "Get Up," Greenberg offered his thoughts on the College Football Playoff potentially expanding to 24 teams. He made it clear that he believes it'd be a disastrous move for the sport.

"If you put every single team that might win the championship into the Playoff, you might just as well not play the regular season to begin with," Greenberg said. "If we live in a world whether Ohio State and Michigan rest their starters for that game at the end of the season because they've got the potential of five playoff games still sitting in front of them, then college football as we know it ceases to exist."

Paul Finebaum agrees that an expanded CFP field would devalue and dilute the regular-season product.

Believe it or not, ESPN reporter Heather Dinich brought up Greenberg's concern to Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel this week.

"I like Mike, but I don't see that happening," Manuel told Dinich. "I can't envision a world where that would happen. I don't think it devalues (the regular season) at all."

Is expansion inevitable for the CFP?

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips recently admit that he's in favor of a 24-team model for the Playoff. The Big Ten has also shown support for this potential move.

"When you're leaving national-championship-contending teams out of the playoff, you don't have the right number. 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," Phillips said, via ESPN. "If you're going to ask presidents and chancellors and boards to continue to invest in their football programs, it's really important that they have hope, that they have an opportunity at the beginning of the season to get into the playoff."

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, meanwhile, has voiced his support for a 16-team model.

Barring a sudden change of heart, it sounds like the CFP's field will eventually expand past 12 teams.

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This story was originally published May 20, 2026 at 1:54 PM.