It was reported earlier today that the NCAA Tournament could be expanding to 72 or 76 teams as soon as next season, which most people around college basketball are against.
At the Big 12 Spring meetings in Orlando, FL earlier today, NCAA President Charlie Baker focused a lot on the expansion of March Madness, and stated that this expansion could be coming very soon.
"That would be the goal, to try and do this for next year...We've been talking about 72 and 76," Baker told Front Office Sports' David Rumsey.
Regardless of how much fans and experts around college hoops hate the idea of expanding the NCAA Tournament, it's likely inevitable. Several experts around the sport have expressed their frustrations with this idea, most notably Jon Rothstein.
Rothstein even proposed an open rally in Central Park to protest NCAA Tournament expansion.
"Dear America, I will host an open rally in Central Park to protest expansion of the NCAA Tournament if this chatter continues. If you don't live in the NYC area, you are more than welcome to fly in and attend. We must stick together if and when crisis occurs," Rothstein preached.
Well, no matter his efforts, it doesn't look like the NCAA has any plans on changing its mind.
Other analysts, such as ESPN's Fran Fraschilla and Field of 68 Network's Jeff Goodman, proposed expansion plans while simultaneously citing their displeasure with the idea of expansion.
Fraschilla proposes a field that includes 72 teams, but it seems more likely that the NCAA Tournament would become a field of 76 teams if it expands.
And one can't forget Duke basketball legend and current analyst Jay Bilas' take on the potential expansion of March Madness from about a year ago.
"Never underestimate the NCAA's capacity to do sometihng stupid. And if they did this, it would be profoundly stupid." Bilas didn't mince words one bit.
And beyond the experts in the sport and their opinions, there are also the fans and insiders who simply enjoy March Madness the way it is. It's worked this way for over a decade, and changing it now just seems silly to lots of people.
No matter how much most folks around college hoops want to fight it, it's hard to imagine the NCAA Tournament doesn't expand soon, and potentially so soon that the days of a 68-team field are already behind us.