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In what has been a tumultuous college football season, the push to expand the College Football Playoff (CFP) to 12 teams is raising eyebrows. With just one week left in the regular season, it's evident that an expanded field might be more of a burden than a boon this year.

Take Alabama, for instance. The Crimson Tide found themselves trailing by three touchdowns to Oklahoma, marking one of several shocking developments. Over at Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn pulled off an unexpected victory over Texas A&M, adding to the chaos. Meanwhile, Ole Miss's collapse against Florida effectively ended Lane Kiffin's hopes of contending for the SEC Championship, let alone a CFP berth.

The triple losses suffered by these SEC squads highlight a season marked by mediocrity. Instead of witnessing dominant performances, fans saw repeated upsets even when everything was on the line. The idea of including these three-loss teams in the expanded playoff seems to detract from its credibility. In fact, the mere possibility that any of these teams could still make it into the playoff feels like a bitter pill to swallow.

The ambition to grow the playoff to 16 teams echoes like picking up random hitchhikers. The SEC and Big Ten's push for automatic qualifiers also seems flawed when current performances don't merit inclusion. As the regular season winds down, the prevailing sentiment is that the CFP is overpriced and bloated.

Despite this, pockets of consistency exist. Indiana, for example, has managed to hold its own, showing up week after week even though they suffered a heavy defeat at Ohio State. Oregon and Ohio State also deserve mention for their stability throughout the season.

During the CFP era, three-loss teams would have found their way into a 12-team bracket, but the abundance of subpar contenders makes that less appealing now. Reflecting on the SEC, the Rebels, Aggies, and Tide fail to justify a playoff spot. Georgia, too, teeters on the brink of joining the three-loss group if Texas wins out.

The narrative of SEC's schedule strength is only believable to a point. Nick Saban's quip about Jordan-Hare Stadium being haunted seemed plausible when Auburn rallied late to beat Texas A&M in a dramatic four-overtime game. This upset was ironic given Texas A&M's earlier wins against LSU and defeats by South Carolina.

For Alabama, the loss to Oklahoma marked the first time the team failed to score a touchdown since 2011. Years ago, that absence of offensive production was a precursor to a national championship, but the current season places little importance on such historic rivalries.

The SEC's struggles are mirrored in the Big 12, a conference that has managed to entertain despite low expectations following the departure of Texas and Oklahoma. Every team in the Big 12 has at least two losses, yet the league has overachieved in terms of sheer entertainment value.

With Kansas making headlines for defeating three ranked teams in successive weeks, and Arizona State jockeying for a spot in the Big 12 Championship Game, the conference remains unpredictable. Meanwhile, SMU has secured a berth in the ACC Championship Game and could find itself in the CFP despite this being its inaugural season in a Power Four conference.

As the season's end draws near, the future of the CFP remains a contentious topic, one fraught with questions about the value and viability of expansion.