Every year around this time I get a strange desire...
...to know who the 2 best teams are in college football, and every year (with the exception of '05 UT vs. USC) the BCS lets me down. Why can't we just have a playoff like every other sport and every other level of football? A playoff would not wear out the players too much, because high school and the pros do it. And if the season is too long, then just cut out one week of baby seal clubbing at the start.
Others say the bowls are college football tradition and have too much nostalgia to be done away with. Sports are about competing to find out who's best, not holding onto outdated traditions and letting the media hype decide who the 2 best teams are. We could still keep the bowls, just let the top 8, 12, or 16 teams compete for a championship. A playoff system wouldn't be perfect, and the 9th, 13th, or 17th team might wonder if they deserved a shot, but it would still much better than this year where the 3rd , 4th, and 5th best teams in nation do deserve a shot, but aren't getting one.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:11 AM ^
refreshing idea.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:15 AM ^
but until either one of us pays the NCAA millions of dollars to change the system or someone who has a brain gets in to a power position in the conf leadership this is what we get.
I think it is a joke of a system and voting on who you think is the best is what it is.
What makes college football so great is that any given Saturday a team that you and I think is a joke can walk into a stadium and pull an upset.
I feel bad for teams like TCU and Boise St because as we saw last year Utah spanked Bama and I'm sure either one of those teams including Cinci can hang with Texas as well.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:16 AM ^
I have heard a million times how money is the biggest hurdle. Well nobody in their right mind can seriously tell me that huge dollars won't still be made as well as another gazillion on top of that if some sort of playoff format is created.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:23 AM ^
A BCS division (or Division 1 or Super Maxo Swagger Division) is the Final Frontier of sports. It is the ONE Golden Goose that has not been tapped and I think the day will come.
Prolly not the time until the economy turns around a bit, and I Do think there is a problem with logistics, such as getting fan bases to travel from one sight to the next week after week (if you go beyond an eight-team format), but sooner or later it's got to happen.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:30 AM ^
But its like you said, sooner or later its going to happen. I think the playoffs will still sell easily just like Final 4 tickets. A lot of fans will go just to see the spectacle even if its not their team and fill out the seats for the fans who couldn't travel.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:32 AM ^
the travel arguement is weak at best. Look at the NCAA Hoops Tourney.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:46 AM ^
Basketball doesn't require a week inbetween games. Maybe the people on this board would be willing to make separate trips to FL, CA, etc. on consecutive weekends for semifinal and championship games, but it would be a tough sell for the majority of fans.
December 7th, 2009 at 12:16 PM ^
So what are the three weekends of the NCAA Hoops Tourney? How is that set up any different? 64, Sweet 16 and then the Final 4. Football 8, 4, 2.
3 seperate cities, 3 seperate weekends.
What am I missing? It would be the same set up.
Hell, they could even give the top four seeds a round one home game in this format as a reward for their hard work.
December 7th, 2009 at 5:08 PM ^
The problem with this set-up is the middle game. This works in basketball because the NCAA tournament is set up in a regional format, so if you're a top seed, your fans are generally at least within driving distance. You couldn't have this in football due to the bowls, which would require a majority of the nation to travel down to FL, CA, AZ, etc. Secondly, it's a lot easier to fill up a 30-40,000 seat arena than it is for a 90,000+ seat stadium like the Rose Bowl.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:19 AM ^
if we continue to bring up the same point over and over again, the BCS will go away and a playoff system will be put in place...OR, maybe absolutely nothing will happen and it will just annoy everyone to read the same threads every day.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:34 AM ^
...nobody is forcing you to read the threads.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:58 AM ^
...its not like this thread had an informative title, such as: "Another Thread Hopelessly Complaining About the BCS and Asking for a Playoff System."
If that were the case I would not have read this. However, I was very interested to find out what this "strange desire" was. Needless to say, I was very disappointed.
December 7th, 2009 at 12:25 PM ^
I've had some disappointments in my life, but nothing holds a candle to this travesty.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:22 AM ^
"Others say the bowls are college football tradition and have too much nostalgia to be done away with. Sports are about competing to find out who's best, not holding onto outdated traditions and letting the media hype decide who the 2 best teams are."
Would you be alright with us changing our jerseys?
Also I am not pro BCS by any means, but if you look at the D-II play-off picture you have two or three teams competing for a NC for a around a decade at a time. This may seem fun if your team is one of those three teams, but if they aren't it could be a long decade. I am not saying what happens in the D-II play-offs would happen in our division, but it is the closest thing we have to try to predict what would happen in ours and I am just sayihg be careful what you wish for. It may very well be much much worse.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:41 AM ^
I'm only against tradition and nostalgia when it gets in the way of competition
December 7th, 2009 at 11:28 AM ^
Can you imagine what the rights to broadcast the whole tournament, let alone the final game would go for?
The whole debate is really quite silly and extremely short sighted.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:33 AM ^
and it would generate so much hype from teams playing each other that normally wouldn't play each other. Plus as a fan it adds one more week for me. YES.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:37 AM ^
...A playoff could be done without the bowls starting with Championship week, and the teams could be picked just as they are now. So, really, the bowls wouldn't be affected in the least. Blame the presidents of the Pac Ten and Big Ten for stonewalling and/or filibustering every discussion that ever happens on a playoff.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:42 AM ^
I’ve always had this crazy idea in my head about moving “Bowl Season” to the beginning of the year with the end of the year being some form of playoff. The bowls could occur all across the country (since it is the end of summer and not the middle of winter) and pit two teams together at neutral sites. Imagine being able to go see two non-Big Ten powerhouses competing in the Big House. The outcome of the games would have no bearing on the season in terms of W-L record but could be used to have more informed initial poll rankings. Teams making bowl games could be decided upon by the previous year’s record. There are obviously many flaws with this idea and would never work, hence the crazy idea qualifier.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:43 AM ^
Every year around this time, the same question is raised (why can't we have a playoff.)
You are certainly free to raise the question, but I don't see it happening, for several reasons.
1) The money. Yes, potentially gazillions could be made. But the devil is in the details: who gets the gazillions? How is the pie sliced up?
2) Academics. Yes, to some degree, college athletics and academics don't mix, and are a joke. But not completely. Potentially preparing for a bunch of playoff games at the same time as finals would be brutal. Even though I think academics are worse on Basketball teams than football, at least the tourney doesn't fall at exactly the same time as final exams.
3) Logistics. Who hosts the games? Do we move to something like the NFL, with potential outdoor games in Ann Arbor, Columbus, Happy Valley, Nebraska, Iowa, Washington, et. al. through January? Do the current major bowls have the same money guarantee? Who fills the stands? With the NCAA basketball tourney, you can see several games, and potentially two games with your team, in a single weekend. Also, in the tourney, at least in the first two weekends, multiple teams are buying tickets at the same venue. With football, you would have to basically fill stands for a single playoff game, potentially in a small market area (i.e., Boise, or Lincoln Nebraska) or in the south at a bowl location far from the home of the fans. I just see significant trouble making this work.
A playoff is a fun idea to speculate on, but I don't see it happening for at least these reasons.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:57 AM ^
The coaches - unless you have a legit shot at winning in a given year, they don't want a playoff. For most schools, going to a bowl game is considered a successful season. Why would any coach want to dramatically increase the level needed to consider the season a success.
The programs/schools - they want pretty pictures to put on the brochures they send to recruits. More bowls, more pretty pictures. Plus, gives smaller schools the chance to be on ESPN and show their program to potential recruits, students. Also, add the fact that 30+ teams end their season with a victory.
The NCAA - They love to spread the myth of college football that every game matters, blah, blah, blah. With no playoff - there is some kernel to truth to that statement. Add a playoff, football's regular season looks like basketball's. Most of America only cares about college hoops because of the NCAA tourney.
However, none of these matter compared to the main reason listed above - The almighty dollar and who gets to keep most of the dollars.
December 7th, 2009 at 12:35 PM ^
there's a split between FBS teams which are members of BCS conferences (which actually have a shot at the BCS Championship Game) and those which do not (TCU, Boise St, BYU, Utah, Fresno St, etc.). Your statements about coaches and schools apply to the BCS conference members; the non-BCS conference members want in on the really big game and a chance for a National Championship. Truth be told, the "NCAA" without the schools is just an administrative shell, which would coordinate a FBS playoff if asked.
December 7th, 2009 at 12:40 PM ^
College baseball's postseason runs right at the end of the spring semester. I don't hear them belly aching to change. It's college football, the schools can work with the players.
Finals weeks is this week for a bunch of schools, yet there were games this past weekend.
December 7th, 2009 at 11:56 AM ^
I'm pretty confident the two best teams are playing this year. Unless Cinci comes out and blows Florida out of the water (which I pray for every night), Boise State only had a hiccuping Oregon as a quality win and TCU only really had Clemson (I think BYU and Utah were both pretty massively overrated this year).
December 7th, 2009 at 12:33 PM ^
"Sports are about competing to find out who's best"
I think this is the problem. Only in the last 15 years had this National Champion thing been the biggest deal ever. ESPN makes it out to be the only reason you play an entire season. Never mind conference championships, never mind great seasons. If you don't win the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP you are a failure.
Personally I like the idea of having a great season and being happy with it. Whoever wins the Rose Bowl will be so thrilled. Ohio State will remember this season for a long time, as will Oregon. Now maybe these teams could have got in a playoff and won, who knows, but i seriously doubt it. This way you can take your kids to a bowl game win, be super happy, be BIG TEN and Rose Bowl champions. Personally I will take having half of the teams be happy about their seasons every year. Than making 1 champion happy, who 80 of the time would be the same team that was in the national championship game anyway.
December 7th, 2009 at 12:40 PM ^
With a playoff system, college football becomes a mini-NFL (Saturday edition), essentially a minor league. One winner and 119 losers. Not for me, thanks.
December 7th, 2009 at 12:46 PM ^
I know it would suck ass to see UF and Tim Tebow get their shit together after a loss to Bama, and then win a playoff, but tons of fans would love it.
Personally, I would have loved to see UM in 2006 get a second chance at winning a title. Maybe they wouldn't have gotten there, but maybe they would have. I know I'm not alone in saying that I wouldn't mind seeing them try.
December 7th, 2009 at 1:27 PM ^
knowing that both teams were headed for the playoffs, and the game was just to determine a seed? I like second chances as much as the next guy (though probably not as much as Glen Winston); but I loved the 2006 game being for all the marbles in the Big Ten and a shot at the NC.
December 7th, 2009 at 3:47 PM ^
Before ESPN, I don't think anyone really cared about "mythical" National Championships except Notre Dame (& maybe some of those southern schools still trying to make up ground because of their post-Civil War inferiority complex). Now every media outlet seems to beat the drum for this non-stop. Apparently they figure there's a lot of money to be made on it. It's amazing (and sad) how many college football fans are buying into the need-a-playoff argument.
1997 was a special season for me as an M fan because we went undefeated & won the Rose Bowl. I could care less whether anybody else thought we were the best team in the nation or not.
December 7th, 2009 at 1:12 PM ^
Every year around this time I get a strange desire to see Michigan in a bowl game, but alas, that doesn't happen anymore. Argh....
December 7th, 2009 at 1:27 PM ^
a bunch of Wolverines played the Florida Gators in that Capital One Bowl in Orlando; that was a day to remember, 01/01/08.
December 7th, 2009 at 1:56 PM ^
We need an end of the year Mark Cuba Top Gun challenge or something. This guy could throw his millions at it and the teams invited could participate on a voluntary basis. Man I wish this could work.
December 7th, 2009 at 2:07 PM ^
Every year around this time, I get a strange desire to drink a copious amount of egg nog. Not sure why. It may be due to the presence of the jolly fat guy in a red suit (and no, I'm not talking about Charlie Weis).
December 7th, 2009 at 3:35 PM ^
Playoffs suck. Long live conferences, conference championships, "mythical" national championships & subsequent exhibition season of bowl games attempting to matchup disparate programs in exotic/warm weather locations that more often than not favor one of the participants with a near home-field advantage.
December 7th, 2009 at 8:02 PM ^
Nitpicking, but a playoff doesn't necessarily prove who the two best teams in the country are, especially in a single-elimination format. Often, a high seed will be upset during the preliminary rounds.