2008: Proof Positive that We Need College Football Playoffs

Every year, the debate rages over whether or not to have a playoff system that enhances or replaces the current Bowl Championship Series.  This year more than any other is proof of how badly we need one. After 10 years of hit-or-miss BCS National Championships, the time has come for a change.

The past ten seasons have been marked with excellent examples of the necessity for a college football playoff system, but simply looking at how this season has played out should be enough to make the case clear.

The arguments for who should be going to the championship are endless.  There’s the OU lost to Texas who lost to Texas Tech who lost to OU triangle.  There’s Alabama’s argument that had they lost earlier in the season instead of now, they would still be a contender.  Utah - no losses.  USC - “we’re the best and we can’t help that our conference was bad this year.”  Penn State has an argument in there somewhere.  Florida’s loss was a fluke.

Bottom line, there’s 8 (9 if you include Boise State) who have legitimate claims to be in the National Championship Game.

One-Loss Teams

It seems like every year, there are worthy teams who slipped up sometime during the year.  Rather than look at the past when this happened, let’s focus on this year, where no team in a major conference went undefeated.  It just so happens that this year, 7 of the 8 top teams have one loss each and should all have a shot at the national championship.  The undefeated teams in smaller conferences, including Utah and Boise State, should have an opportunity as well.  Using the ranking system below, one of them does get their chance.

Damn the Conferences (a place for the BCS)

The only redeeming quality that the BCS COULD have is in its ability to rank the teams and set the stage for the playoffs.  The formula is far from perfect and would need to make amends with the polls that walked away from it in the past (such as the Associate Press Poll), but otherwise, having a system that combines human voting systems with computer algorithms is the most fair way.

The formula - we’d leave that up to the experts.

However the formula is calculated, the Conferences would need to be removed from the picture altogether.  There should be now guaranteed spots for this conference or that conference.  Take the top 8 teams, period.  The conferences would still hold some sway from the perspective that they allow for stronger rankings by having stronger teams in them.  The SEC and Big 12, for example, would have the advantages this year of having tough schedules as well as having conference championship games.  In the past, the Pac 10 and Big 10 have had advantages for the opposite reason.

Either way, when it comes to the national championship and college football playoff system, the teams are ranked and that’s that.

How This Year SHOULD Look

Imagine the potential scenarios of a bracket that looked like this:

Imagine…

• The rematch potentials - OU vs Texas, Florida vs Alabama
• The magical Cinderella story potential with Utah’s magical season or Joe Pa’s return to the top
• OU’s or Texas Tech’s unstoppable offense clashing with USC’s immovable defence

Perhaps most importantly, the games would MEAN something.  As it is, there is only one game that has determines the national champion.  The other games, as glorious as they are, mean very little.  Do you remember who won the Sugar Bowl in 2006?  It was a great game, but didn’t mean much.  What about the 2005 Fiesta Bowl?

For those who say it would make the season too long, keep in mind, this system would add two games to the schedule.  Just two.  The big game could still happen a week after New Year’s Day.

In an ideal world where all of the BCS Bowls got along and didn’t fight for prominence, the 4 quarterfinal games would be those bowls…

…and that is where the roadblock lies.

We Love the Good’ol Bowls, but They’re in the Way of Progress

After all is said and done, the primary opponents to a playoff system are the big bowl’s and the money that supports them.  They happen on or after New Year’s day.  Always have.  In a playoff system, their long standing tradition of helping to determine national champioships is diminished.  They would be relegated, in this system, to happening around Christmas instead of New Year’s day, thus reducing their importance.  They just don’t want that to happen.

We need a playoff system, and the major bowls stand in the way of progress.  They can still help determine a national champion, just not as much as before.  They will balk (especially the Rose Bowl) but if the people get their way, it’s either fit in or pick your teams from the bottom of the pack.  It’s that simple.

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