The SEC and the Big12 are clearly maneuvering to just declare themselves a separate league, with a separate championship that would be kind of like the AFC/NFC of old, and pretty much destroy 100+ years of college football history in the process. They'll probably poach a few more teams on their way out the door, then close it once and for all, if they can get away with it.

What if to combat this, the ACC, Big12, and (yes), the PAC, formed an alliance with advancement and relegation model with two tiers. You could even pull in the G5 leagues for extra excitement. You start year one with eight teams that look something like Miami, FSU, Clemson, OSU, KSU, Utah, Boise, Boston College, and everyone else in the bottom tier. The top tier play every other team round robin, plus two teams from the bottom tier. At the end of the year, the three top teams of the bottom tier advance, and the three bottom teams of the top tier get relegated.

I think this would bring huge urgency, as you've got a nearly 50% chance of getting sent down, plus a non-trivial chance of rising into the big time if you're in that bottom group. Having real stakes at the end of the year would surely be worth a lot of ratings $$$, and the top league would be battle tested at the start of every year, with no dregs like you find in the Power2, teams like Rutgers and Vanderbilt, who are just bad year in and year out. It would be hard to argue that at least two of the top teams aren't ready to compete with the BIG and SEC.

Feel free to downvote or tell me why this is a dumb idea that wouldn't work. It's just a thought experiment as I look at models showing five SEC teams and four BIG teams in the playoffs and one each from the Big12, ACC, and G5, and wonder what might be done to break the stranglehold.