Kirk Herbstreit Wants Power Four Conferences To Leave G5 Schools, Start New League

Since the advent of NIL, conference realignment, and the rapid expansion of the College Football Playoff, there's been an ongoing debate as to the best path forward for college football. 

Few sports have undergone such a dramatic sea change in such a short period of time. Players are paid. Geography no longer matters, with Stanford and Cal in the ACC, and the Big Ten stretching from New Jersey to California. Bowl games, once an important tradition, are quickly disappearing, as more and more players opt out. The transfer portal continues to expand each year, as players go out in search of better offers.

While these dramatic shifts have created new benefits, such as teams like the Indiana Hoosiers being able to put together a 16-0 team with coaching, quality transfers, and financial investment, there have been tremendous downsides as well. And college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit has an idea of how to fix some of them.

ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit talking to Ohio State football head coach Ryan Day. Photo: Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Herbstreit Says P4 Teams Should ‘Break Away’ From NCAA

In an interview with Front Office Sports around the Super Bowl, Herbstreit gave his answer on how to make the sport a better product in a rapidly changing era.

"I think, we need to break away," Herbstreit said.

"I think the Power Four needs to break away," he continued. "Create their own world, create their own governing body. Allow the Group of Four to create their own world. Allow them to have their own playoff. Much like FCS and Division II and III. Just create a new level, which would be the Power Four. Let’s create a new governing body, let’s put a commissioner. If we need to unionize the players, to allow them to create a CBA to avoid the antitrust laws, make the rules, come to an agreement like the NFL does on both sides."

He isn't the first to make this proposal, and it has some obvious merits. The NCAA continues to be as ineffectual and bumbling as ever, and the big programs and conferences have essentially taken over the College Football Playoff system entirely anyway. In fact, disagreements between the Big Ten and SEC prevented further expansion this offseason. And the Group of Five teams that made the playoff were swiftly eliminated, sparking more conversation about limiting the number of teams from those conferences that can reach the tournament in the first place. 

Then there's the issue of paying players directly, which Herbstreit believes will inevitably lead to costly lawsuits.

"I just think that’s the only way. If we don’t go there, I just don’t know how people aren’t going to threaten to sue and in litigation, everybody goes like this," Herbstreit explained, throwing his hands up.

"So, we’re having a hard time making definitive answers that we in the sport know are for the best intent. And maybe the players, and the agents are saying, why are you doing this to my guy, so they threaten with litigation and everybody backs up. Until you have an agreement, and a CBA, I just don’t know how we’re going to come to an agreement with the players, and the agents, and the parents with the new governing body. We need to create a CBA".

A CBA, or collective bargaining agreement, is used in all professional sports. And it creates clear-cut rules based on agreement and compromise between ownership, in say, MLB or the NFL, and players. In this instance, it could be used to create clear-cut, enforceable rules between teams, players, and agents, instead of the complete free-for-all we have now.

Making collegiate athletes into essentially professionals with a union would be another gigantic change for the sport. But virtually everyone's in agreement that things can't continue the way they are now. And Herbstreit's suggestion might be the best path forward. Unless you're a G5 team hoping to use CFB Playoff appearances to grow your program, of course.