Story by
Ball State coach on college football leaders, Congress: 'Most dysfunctional in the entire world'
- Story by
- Ball State coach on college football leaders, Congress: 'Most dysfunctional in the entire world'
MUNCIE — As college football continues to take steps towards a 24-team College Football Playoff, several FBS head coaches have spoken out in favor of or against the expanded field.
Add Ball State coach Mike Uremovich to the "against" group.
Advertisement
On Oct. 16, it was reported that the CFP and ESPN had entered into a "handshake agreement" to broadcast a 24-team playoff beginning in the 2027 season. The plan still requires formal board approval and final contracts from all participating conferences, but it feels inevitable at this point that the CFP will double in size starting next season.
When asked about the planned expansion, Uremovich kept his answer short, but he was highly critical of the decision and of the state of college football as a whole — even calling out the NCAA and Congress.
"My mom told me not to say anything that's not going to be nice about anybody," Uremovich said. "The only thing I'll say on that is — if you look at our country right now, the two organizations that are the most dysfunctional in the entire world that are led by a lot of incompetent people who only look out for themselves is the people running college football and the United States Congress.
"Those are the two groups we're counting on to make this right. I don't have a lot of faith that they're going to make it any better."
Since conference realignment, NIL legislation, the transfer portal, revenue sharing, player eligibility lawsuits and many other things have reshaped the college sports landscape, Congress has made an effort to stabilize things with the much-debated Protect College Sports Act. The Act passed through the Senate in a 77-22 bipartisan vote on Sept. 28 and has since been sent to the House for further debate, but it doesn't sound like Uremovich has much faith in the bill fixing anything.
Advertisement
Uremovich is not the only Mid-American Conference coach to speak out against the expanded playoff field. Central Michigan coach Matt Drinkall recently blasted the 24-team CFP and offered wider critiques on the reactionary nature of the sport as a whole, while Ohio coach John Hauser criticized the removal of conference championship games that a 24-team CFP would bring about.
Journey to BSU: He's a Purdue grad, and first game as Ball State football coach is at Purdue. How he got here
On the other hand, Toledo coach Mike Jacobs was supportive of the expansion at MAC media day, stating his belief that the CFP could benefit from mimicking the FCS playoffs but also expressing a desire for the Group of Six to have more seats at the table in a 24-team field, which many feel is unlikely to happen.
Ball State (3-5, 2-2 MAC) will continue its season under the bright lights of MACtion with a road game at UMass (4-4, 1-3 MAC) on Wednesday, Nov. 4.
Advertisement
Contact Cade Hampton via email at cbhampton@usatodayco.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @CadeHamp10 .
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Ball State coach on college football leaders, Congress: 'Most dysfunctional in the entire world'
