Pete Thamel shares major update on NCAA Tournament expansion, likely number of teams in field

ESPN’s Pete Thamel shared a major update in regards to NCAA Tournament expansion and a likely number of 76, should it happen.

Currently, the NCAA Tournament sits at 68 teams with a round of “First Four” games to get to the standard number of 64. But as Thamel shared on Saturday’s College GameDay, a move to 76 teams is a possibility.

Right now, the NCAA is weighing between 72 and 76 teams for the tournament.

“We have Selection Sunday a month away, and there’s development behind the scenes about what this tournament could look like in 2026,” Thamel said on College GameDay. “NCAA President Charlie Baker is on the record saying there’s been discussions about growing the tournament to either 72 or 76 teams. I had multiple high ranking sources tell me this week that the more likely option if the tournament were to expand would be to 76. This has been a discussion with its media partners for a while on this now, and a decision on whether it does go to 76 would come in the next few months.” 

NCAA Tournament ready for 76 teams?

If the NCAA Tournament were to expand for the 2026 edition, it has to be done soon as Thamel noted. But the more likely number is 76, although it remains to be seen how it would be organized with eight additional teams on the docket.

“The move to 76 would be historic,” Thamel said. “By adding eight teams, it would be the biggest jump in what the tournament looked like since 1985. The logistics of what that could look like have not been set yet, but it’s likely that an additional site, like they have Dayton for the First Four, would be added. Think of a place outside of the eastern time zone for that to happen. One likely wrinkle here is that if the men’s tournament expands by eight teams to 76, the women’s tournament would expand as well. 

“So there’s a lot of variables here. Everybody would have to stay financially whole for this to happen. This has obviously been driven by the power conferences through expansion. You’ve heard Greg Sankey and Tony Petitti be bullish about this expansion. So ultimately, can the money come together and can the sides come together and figure out a way to get to 76?”