College Football Playoff expansion: Board agrees to 12-team field with aim to implement as soon as possible

The College Football Playoff's Board of Managers on Friday voted to expand the playoff field to 12 teams and implement the format as soon as possible, sources tell CBS Sports' Dennis Dodd.

The 12-team bracket, which the board wants to begin as early as the 2024 season, will have the six highest-ranked conference champions as automatic qualifiers along with the six highest-ranked at-large teams following the season.

It is now up to the 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick, those who comprise the CFP Management Committee, to oversee implementation.

The committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday.

They will discuss when to begin implementing the 12-team field. It could be put in as soon as 2024 or as late as the 2026 season once the CFP's 12-year contract with ESPN expires. 

"My response in general is, if people are willing [to do it], anything can happen," said Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson, one of the four key members of that subcommittee alongside Sankey, Bowlsby, and Swarbrick.