Rusty Weiss
The NCAA seems hell-bent on ruining March Madness. Or, at least watering down the product as much as possible.
In a move sure to spark controversy among college basketball fans, the NCAA is reportedly finalizing one of the most significant overhauls of its signature event in decades.
Sources indicate that leadership and basketball committee members are set to greenlight a massive structural shake-up to both the men’s and women’s tournaments shortly after this year’s national championships wrap up.
What is that change? Expanding the tourney to 76 teams. Increasing the number of play-in games.
NCAA leadership is expected to finalize an expansion of the men’s and women’s tournaments to 76 teams soon after this year’s tournament 🏀
— Sports Business Journal (@SBJ) April 3, 2026
The proposal would add eight games to the First Four, with 24 teams playing in an opening round before advancing into the main bracket.
Via… pic.twitter.com/GNp3bj4mAK
The change, long rumored but now seemingly inevitable, promises to reshape the entire March Madness landscape in ways that could fundamentally alter how the tournament feels, plays out, and—most importantly—who gets a shot at glory.
Just kidding. It’s a joke that will expand play-in games that nobody takes seriously in the first place.
At this point, you might as well just add a full round to the tournament and fire off 128 teams. Let’s face it, you’re looking for those cinderella moments in the early games anyway. They make for great drama and lead to clips of last-second shots that you can use in promotions.
Sure, the game might be a terrible contest for 39 minutes, but as long as you have two mediocre teams going at it, that last minute might be gold. Missed shot after missed shot, turnover after turnover, but who cares as long as the last bucket falls in improbable fashion. Drama!
The reality is that a vast majority of the time, the better teams from power conferences advance. Cinderella teams are often nowhere to be found in the Elite Eight and the Final Four.
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Critics are already calling it a cash grab disguised as an opportunity, arguing it risks watering down the magic that makes March so unforgettable. Who’s going to reap the benefits? You might get one or two teams from small conferences, but it’s much more likely that more subpar teams from power conferences get to sneak in the door.
Power-conference bubble teams are licking their chops at the extra at-large bids, while mid-majors and true underdogs worry they’ll be relegated to even more grueling play-in purgatory.
One high-placed source has told reporters the expansion “will happen,” barring some unforeseen disaster. The move will leave fans wondering whether the soul of the tournament is about to be sacrificed on the altar of more television windows and sponsorship dollars.
March Madness is about to look a whole lot different, and it’s not for the better.
