UCLA football fans might need to brace themselves for a sobering reality: the Bruins haven't appeared in a conference championship game since 2012, and with the College Football Playoff (CFP) potentially expanding to 24 teams, that drought could become permanent.

The last time UCLA played for a conference title was over a decade ago. In their final 11 seasons in the Pac-12, the Bruins never made it to the championship game, and they're currently 0-2 since joining the Big Ten. Now, a seismic shift in college football's postseason structure could make those appearances even rarer.

The American Football Coaches Association has officially endorsed a 24-team CFP model, a proposal that would fundamentally reshape the college football calendar. If every Power Four program with a winning record essentially earns a playoff berth, what's the incentive for a conference championship game? For smaller leagues, the title game might still carry weight. But in the SEC or Big Ten, where multiple teams would likely qualify for the expanded bracket, the risk of injury in a conference title matchup could outweigh the reward.

That's not to say conference championship games lack drama—just look at this past December's Indiana-Ohio State thriller, which was a fantastic showcase of talent. But both teams still secured first-round CFP byes afterward, raising the question: are these games necessary when the ultimate prize is already within reach?

Matt Zemek of College Sports Wire has a compelling take on how the shift could work. "If there are no conference championship games, those games get swapped out for bubble play-in games," he explained. "We're not adding games to the schedule, only trading them. Teams that finish first or second in their conferences would not play these games; teams that finish fourth, fifth or sixth would play in them."

The college football landscape has already transformed dramatically over the past decade—from conference realignment to NIL deals to the transfer portal. Conference championship games might simply be the next tradition to evolve. It's far from a done deal, but it's hard to ignore the possibility that UCLA may have already played its last conference title game.