BCS, NCAA Football, NCAA Football Bowl Games NEWS
College Football Needs a Playoff
Published by MoonDog on October 27, 2007
For my first post I want to offer my thoughts on the need for a college football playoff. I realize this has been discussed to the point of creating heartburn, but I’m convinced that a playoff is needed. I’ve heard the arguments from college presidents that a playoff would serve as a detriment to the players academics. PLEASE!!
You will have a hard time convincing me that an additional two or three weeks would cause ever lasting harm to anyone’s grade point average. Another argument that has been heard is the current bowl system and the conference affiliations would be disrupted or eliminated. To steal a line from Lee Corso, “not so fast my friend!” I’ll outline a plan that I believe would, at minimum, attempt to maintain the current bowl system and conference affiliations.
Finally, we have those that profess any playoff system will be flawed. I agree with that to some extent, but the lack of effort and imagination to improve the current system is inexcusable. If you know the current system needs improvement, why remain idle and allow for potential chaos?
I believe the BCS is at least better than the previous method used to crown a national champion. However, if ever there was a year that cried out for a playoff, it’s this past season.
The biggest problem I have with the BCS is the confusion it creates. Instead of having a true national championship game between the two best teams, we’re often left with questions. Let’s face it, if two teams from power conferences don’t finish undefeated, we can only speculate the game pits the two best teams.
In every season where more than two teams finish undefeated or if there are no undefeated teams and multiple one loss teams, we’re left with no true resolution.
So many of you may ask, OK genius, what’s your plan?
Let’s start by stating we all have to make a few concessions. Not all of the initial bowl pairings will be compelling but remember, I’m trying to maintain conference affiliations and arrive at an eventual, and true national champion. It should be further noted that I’m not limiting the participating teams to the major conferences.
We’re seeding the best 16 teams, so this year, as an example, Hawaii may very well have an opportunity to appear. In addition, some of the current conference tie ins may not be maintained, but its all part of the effort to arrive at the ultimate goal.
I’ll begin by incorporating eight bowl games that feature, at least historically, the best 16 teams in the nation. Those eight bowls are the Rose, Sugar, Fiesta, Orange, Cotton, Outback, Capital One, and Peach. While not strictly arbitrary, those eight bowls will have match ups involving one of the top three teams from each of the major conferences.
Therefore, the aforementioned bowls have tie ins that provides each of the major conferences with an equal opportunity. We’ll seed the 16 teams just as we do for the NCAA Basketball Championship and we can use any number of means of seeding the teams.
We can use the BCS standings, an independent panel similar to the NCAA basketball selection committee, or we can use Madam Zubu, psychic friend extraordinaire. I really don’t care what means we use to arrive at the seedings, I just want it done impartially.
From this point forward, the parings are hypothetical. Let’s say Ohio State is seeded #1 and Southern California is the #16 seed. Since the Rose Bowl wants their game between teams representing the Pac 10 and Big 10 (11) Conferences, we’ll maintain that relationship. Keep in mind that my plan doesn’t take seedings into account. If Ohio State was the #4 seed and Southern California the #12 seed, they’d still play in the Rose Bowl to maintain the conference tie in. If the teams are seeded in such a way that the conference tie in can’t be maintained, so be it.
The Cotton Bowl currently matches the SEC’s 2nd or 3rd place team against their equal counterpart from the Big 12. If Georgia is the #8 seed, and Texas the #9 seed, that’s the Cotton Bowl match up. See where I’m going with this?
After the bowl games are played, the remaining teams will participate in the NCAA Football Tournament sponsored by Club Bee Hive, a unique and eclectic dining experience featuring neck bones and fried pickles. Each of the games will be played at neutral sites and maintain the original seeding, just as the NCAA Basketball Tournament does.
By the last weekend in January, we’ll be ready to play the National Championship game and crown a true champion based entirely on impartial pairings and where it matters most – on the field.
I’m anxious to hear your thoughts and by all means, if you have a better plan, I’m all ears.
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