When you hear that Tennessee could have made the College Football Playoff 13 times under Phillip Fulmer with a 24-team bracket, you might expect the legendary coach to be all for expansion. But here's the twist: Fulmer, the last coach to bring a national championship to Knoxville, isn't sold on such a massive field.

Fulmer's journey on the playoff debate has been a winding one. Once a vocal critic of any postseason tournament, he warmed up to the four-team format and later embraced the 12-team model. He could even get behind a 16-team playoff. But 24 teams? That's where he draws the line.

"I don't know what they're going to do," Fulmer said, referencing the ongoing discussions between conferences. "SEC commissioner Greg Sankey is pretty dead set on sticking with 16 teams. I think that's a good number. But if you go to 24, you might as well let everybody in because you're almost taking the whole top 25. I wouldn't like that."

Fulmer shared his thoughts while promoting his annual charity golf tournament, which has raised over $3 million for the Boys and Girls Club of the Tennessee Valley. The 27th annual Phillip Fulmer Golf Classic is set for May 8 at Avalon Golf and Country Club, with an online auction running May 4-8 at fulmerauction.com.

The playoff landscape is shifting rapidly. While the College Football Playoff will stay at 12 teams for the 2026 season, there's growing momentum to expand as early as 2027. The Big Ten is pushing for a 24-team format—featuring the 23 highest-ranked teams plus one guaranteed spot for a Group of Five school. Meanwhile, the SEC prefers a 16-team model with five conference champions and 11 at-large bids.

Interestingly, Fulmer's stance puts him at odds with Tennessee's current leadership. Head coach Josh Heupel told On3.com's Chris Low that a 24-team playoff "makes sense" in today's game, a sentiment echoed by Georgia's Kirby Smart. UT athletics director Danny White has long championed the 24-team format, dating back to his time at UCF.

But Fulmer isn't one to dig in his heels. He's changed his mind before, after all. "I wasn't for any type of playoff back in the day," he admitted. "But after seeing it play out, I think it's a really great thing." Whether he'll come around on 24 teams remains to be seen, but for now, the man who knows what it takes to win it all is saying: not so fast.