Mountain West championship game future cloudy amid CFP 24-team expansion

The fate of the Mountain West’s football conference championship game remains unknown past this season as the College Football Playoff is moving to a 24-team field starting next year.

The move to the 24-team format, announced Monday by the CFP, will see conference championship games eliminated in the Power Four conferences — the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC.

The Mountain West is still determining the potential impacts the expansion of the CFP filed will have on the Group of Six conference, including on bowl games and its conference championship game.

“The Mountain West has been actively engaged in discussions regarding the future structure of the College Football Playoff and the implications of an expanded format,” the conference said in a statement Monday. “Today’s announcement represents a significant change to the structure of the college football postseason landscape. We will continue the analysis of this development with our member institutions and stakeholders, including consideration of the impacts on student-athletes, scheduling, the bowl ecosystem and the annual Mountain West Football Championship Game.”

The elimination of Power Four conference championship games could also be a slight blow to Las Vegas, as the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority in 2023 was asked to submit a bid to potentially host the Big Ten conference championship in a future season.

The CFP field will be comprised of the conference champions from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC, as determined by each conference, and the highest-ranked team from the Mountain West, American, Conference USA, Pac-12 or Sun Belt. The remaining 19 teams will be from the final CFP rankings each season.

As part of the expansion, CFP and ESPN inked a new five-year broadcasting rights deal with ESPN, for $1.7 billion, according to reports.

This year’s CFP will remain at 12 teams with the national championship game scheduled to be held on Jan. 25, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Of the 23 playoff games, 16 of those will be played on campuses, with the quarterfinals and semifinals to be played as part of six historic bowl games, including the Cotton, Fiesta, Orange, Peach, Rose and Sugar Bowl games.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Contact Mick Akers at [email protected] or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.