NCAA Football NEWS
College Football Playoffs? Don’t Talk Playoffs!
Published by MoonDog on December 2, 2007
The culmination of what has been the most exciting college football season in recent history has left the pundits with plenty to talk about. Based on the results of yesterday’s games, not to mention the results of the entire season, more than ever a playoff system is needed to resolve what has become chaos.
Prior to yesterday’s games, Missouri and West Virginia were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the latest BCS poll. Ohio State and Georgia, having completed their regular seasons, were ranked third and fourth respectively in the BCS.
As a result of Missouri and West Virginia losing their games, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit went on record stating LSU should face Ohio State in the BCS Championship game. Herbstreit actually went so far as to state that the pollsters should “rethink their position” and give consideration to who they believe really deserved to be in the title game.
Wait a minute, weren’t Ohio State and Georgia ranked third and fourth in the BCS? Shouldn’t those teams appear in the title game? But alas, many of the “experts” claimed that Georgia shouldn’t play in the BCS Championship because the Bulldogs didn’t appear in the SEC title game.
That logic, or lack thereof, is absolutely flawed because it is the exact opposite of what the BCS system is supposed to do. If you’ve followed college football long enough you’d know the 2001 season resulted in another BCS fiasco.
On November 23 of that year, Nebraska was undefeated, ranked No. 2 in all the polls including the BCS, and were about to play their season finale against Colorado. At the end of the day, Colorado had annihilated the Cornhuskers 62-36, leaving Nebraska out of the Big 12 Championship game and dropping them to No. 4 in the BCS rankings.
Going into the conference championship games on December 1, Miami (FL) and Tennessee were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the BCS respectively. Tennessee only had to defeat LSU in the SEC Championship and they would square off against the Hurricanes for the BCS title. But the Vols lost to LSU 31-20 and as a result, Nebraska ended the season as the No. 2 team in the BCS.
The critics claimed that a team that hadn’t appeared in their conference’s championship game shouldn’t play in the BCS Championship. However, the BCS did exactly what it was supposed to do; it pitted the number No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams in the championship game, based on how the system worked at the time.
Last year, Michigan finished the regular season 11-1 with their only loss coming at Ohio State. Going into the conference championship games, the Wolverines were ranked No. 2 in the BCS, USC ranked third and Florida ranked fourth. Coupled with the Trojan’s loss to UCLA, and Florida’s victory over Arkansas in the SEC Championship, the debating began in earnest.
Would Michigan get another shot at Ohio State or should the Gators vault over the Wolverines for the opportunity? During an interview on ESPN, Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr was asked if his team should play for the BCS Championship. Carr refused to answer the question and intimated that the system would take care of itself.
However, when Florida’s Urban Meyer was asked if the Gators should play for the National Championship, he emphatically promoted his teams’ worthiness to appear in the title game. Just as we witnessed last night, the “experts” chimed in and as a result, pollsters were influenced to rank Florida ahead of the Wolverines, providing them the opportunity to appear in the BCS Championship.
Were the Gators really the team that should have appeared in the title game last season? Probably not. It isn’t that I particularly care which teams appear, I just want to see the absolute number No. 1 and No. 2 face off. The problem we have with the BCS is we don’t like it when it doesn’t work, and apparently we don’t like it when it does.
While the BCS system has been revised over the years, the past two seasons have left unanswered questions and coaches shamelessly politicking for their teams. Just as we witnessed last season, Georgia’s head coach Mark Richt, LSU’s Les Miles, and Southern Cal’s Pete Carroll all appeared via telephone interviews on ESPN’s SportsCenter.
It didn’t come as a shock that each coach believed their team should appear in the BCS title game. Is this what we’ve been reduced to? Those teams, along with Kansas, Virginia Tech, and Oklahoma all have legitimate claims to play for a national championship. Would any number of possibilities result in a compelling national championship game? Of course. But does it solve the current mess that has become the BCS? Absolutely not.
At the time I’m writing this, the AP and Coaches Polls have been released and the current rankings are as follows:
1. Ohio State
2. LSU
3. Oklahoma
4. Georgia
5. Virginia Tech
Just as I stated above, politics have influenced the pollsters to vault LSU, ranked No. 7 in last week’s BCS rankings, into potentially playing for the BCS Championship. While not official at this point, it would appear to be a formality once the final BCS rankings are released. How can LSU jump five spots in both polls with a mediocre victory against Tennessee? Is LSU worthy of the opportunity? Yes. Should they be there? No.
Based on the current BCS system, however flawed it may be, the Georgia Bulldogs deserve to appear in the title game against Ohio State. Just as the Wolverines were punished last season, the Bulldogs are going to be left out when they’ve done nothing wrong.
While I don’t like the BCS and never have, the facts are such that when the No. 1 and No. 2 teams lose, the No. 3 and No. 4 teams should get a chance to play. That’s why the BCS was established in the first place and yet we haven’t reached a point were we can consistently arrive at a true national champion.
Until we reach a consensus on what method will best serve the ultimate purpose, we’re going to be left with having these same discussions for the foreseeable future.
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