All you have to do is look at how many times a team has gone undefeated, won their bowl game and STILL not been the National Champ to see that we DEFINITELY need a playoff!
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Beer is NOT the answer. "Beer?" is the question. The answer is "YES!"
Yes, I would definitely prefer to see the "pecking order" decided on the field instead of by computers, sportswriters, and coaches. Get rid of the bias, the points differential, conference arguments, etc. and let the guys prove their abilities against each other.
We desperately need one, but 4 teams is plenty. Some folks don't want to wreck the traditional bowl feeling and anything more would be a radical change. Making a mini-tournament requires minimal changes and solves the only real problem . . . deciding who is number 1. An 8 or 16 team playoff system is a lot of extra games and would extend the season out WAY too far.
Let's get the BCS bowls (except for one) back into the main bowl weekend like they used to be (they've been creeping further into the following week each year) and make sure that #1 plays #4 and #2 plays #3. Then the big game is a week later. Of the 4 BCS bowls, 1 bowl would be irrelevent, 2 bowls get semis and 1 bowl is the biggie. They rotate every year, just keep doing the same thing, rotate them. Actually, in a typical year as it is now, THREE of the games don't mean much. So with this change 3 of the big 4 are deciding the National Champ and are all HUGE games.
If we end up arguing (and we WILL) over who should have been #8 or who should have been #16 then we've completely lost the point. We don't need to change the bowl tradition, we just need to find out who is #1. There's a threshold somewhere but surely it isn't 16 and I think 8 is way too many as well. To me, if you didn't do enough to be recognized by the press, coaches,strength of schedule and the stats as being in the top 4, then you are CERTAINLY not #1.
There's a reason why so many people prefer college over the NFL. EVERY game is potentially the one that ends your championship chances. This "do or die" every weekend seems unfair sometimes but I think it's why we love it and are so passionate about college football. Fans all around the country care about big games played elsewhere because every game affects the polls.
I'm a Gator fan and there have been plenty of years where we had a very good team, finished in the top 16 (or even 8), but NO WAY did we deserve a shot at a National Championship. Teams starting off the season in the top 5 can probably lose 2 games and stay in the top 16, that's ridiculous to allow them to compete for a championship. They'd be underachieving and then still have a shot to use their superior talent to win it all???
I totally agree we need to put an end to the controversy and split championships. I just don't like the idea of devaluing the regular season games for a full-blown postseason. It's never going to be perfect, but changing the purpose of the big 4 bowls gives us a National Champion that 99% of the fans would agree on. That 1% that thinks their #5 team was the best team will just have to get over it. Same thing would happen with the #9 team or the #17 team. We'll have some people griping every year no matter what system is being used.
Problems that come up every year in deciding who is #2 (though often go away):
1 loss big conference team or 0 loss weak conference team?
or
0 loss team A or 0 loss team B
or
1 loss team A or 1 loss team B
The solution to the above problem isn't solved with bringing 2 loss teams and most every 1 loss team back into the picture. Team #6 and especially team #16 have absolutely nothing to do with solving that problem. In a mini-tourney of the top 4, I'd be fully content that the winner was worthy of being called the National Champion.
Sorry, I meant to give my $0.02 and I think I tossed in $20. I guess I'm just a little excited. GO GATORS!
In my honest opinion we will never see a playoff. Its all about money. You are talking about a bowl game changing from a great tradition and the Final game of the seaon to a precursor to a bigger game. That going to happen next week. I just dont see it happening. I would love it but I think money will get in the way. I dont think the big 4 BCS bowls will be willing to only have the big game once every four years. Just my $.02.
Enjoying reading everyones idea.
GBH
We are.........................................PENN STATE
I think all conferences should have a champ game and those winners go to the playoffs but............it's never going to happen. There is just way too much money in the bowl games.
Also, it means longer seasons. Thats great for me but could be bad for the kids playing( more injuries and such.)
ORIGINAL: greenbayhog
I dont think the big 4 BCS bowls will be willing to only have the big game once every four years.
That's what they have now. They get the BIG game once every four years. The small modification I was talking about meant that 3 of the 4 big bowls are directly involved in determining the Champion every single year. So tons more people would watch these two "semi-final" games and obviously the final game would be huge as ever.
What I was talking about leaves that entire bowl system intact so the money-makers are plenty happy.
College Football Playoffs?
