Big Ten favors plus-1 format over 4-team playoff

In a perfect world for the Big Ten Conference, nothing about the imperfect way college football decides its national champion would change.

"If our presidents would vote today, we would vote for the status quo," Nebraska chancellor Harvey Perlman said in a conference call Monday.

But the Big Ten is prepared to budge -- sort of.

Acknowledging change is inevitable, league officials announced Monday they prefer a plus-one format over a four-team playoff. That would keep the current bowl system intact -- a key sticking point for a league that cherishes its tie to the Rose Bowl.

In the plus-one format, the bowl games would be played, and then the top two teams would meet for the national championship.

Big Ten administrators met over the weekend at the conference's Chicago headquarters.