Why college football needs a playoff, part 2

2009-11-17T10:35:18-05:00

2008-11-11T23:25:52-05:00

100

2008-11-11T23:26:47-05:00

2008-11-12T19:55:06-05:00

Bundyism

Fort Irwin 606411

101 takara.. Over-rated lets talk SEC. I'll give you Florida that is the only legit team in the SEC right now. Penn State would beat Alabama. You can take that to the bank. The only team I did not want to see PSU play if they went undefeated was Florida.. A loss against Iowa on the road in 30 degree temp and 30 mph wind is what happens when you play in the Big Ten. Iowa going into that game had 4 L's on the year by a combined 12 points. If they were an SEC team they would probably be ranked in the top 15. Looking back Florida lost to Ole Miss at home in Sept. A lot of you Big ten haters want to look at the 2 OSU defeats in the BCS games the last 2 years.. However if you look at Big Ten vs. SEC since the BCS started I bet the Big Ten has a better record. That's pretty damn good considering every bowl game is an away game for the Big Ten teams. Pac-10, Big 12, SEC play home games sometimes for Bowls.. Can't remember last time that happened for a Big Ten team. Penn State vs. Florida Ohio State vs. Alabama Michigan State vs. Georgia On a Neutral field on the west coast.. Big Ten takes 2 of 3 Big Ten teams on the road.. Big ten take 1 of 3 Big Ten Teams at home.. Big ten take 3 of 3 3322789

2008-11-12T18:13:18-05:00

246

pooloo

Cleveland 218892

100 Let me break this down for everyone here. There are two issues that need to be addressed before this discussion goes further. Number 1, to compare the pro leagues playoffs to the CSFB (mythical) National Championship is not a balanced argument. The NBA has the finals which is a championship and crowns not necessarily the best team in the league, but rather the winner of the league title. Same with baseball and the world series (where are Japan and Cuba?). The Superbowl champs are just that, the "Superbowl Champs". Now those titles imply that they are the best in the league, but actually no one cares about that; what matters is that the team won the playoffs and the title which provides closure. Pro sports are looking for a winner, while college football is looking for the Golden Fleece. College football fans are trying to say that the national champion is the best team in the country. To quantify something as subjective as the ???best??? of over 100 teams is impossible without a defined criteria. So let???s start from scratch and define what the national champion is. Forget about the title, let???s look at the substance. Number 2, if the discussions and conjecture do not end with a playoff what good is it then? Unless all fans are 100% satisfied with the naming of the champion, the definition and the methods used, it makes no sense. Essentially we are arguing about degrees of satisfaction. Maybe its 40% now and a playoff would increase that to 90%. At any rate the 9th team or the 17th team or the 119th team is going to say ???we beat such and such and??????, or ???we lost to such and such by one point and?????? and there will always be debate. If you are going to fix it, do it right. So let???s add a playoff with say 8 teams to keep it simple and cool off these hot heads. Use the current bowls, rankings, polls and computers and systems in place. The next step is to call it the ???College Football Champion???. The College Football Championship title is bestowed upon the team that qualifies for the playoffs (by measuring in the top 8 the ???defined??? criteria) and wins the playoff. No mythical national champion. If your conference sucks and your record is 11-0...well enjoy that Citrus Bowl and top 10 ranking! Searching for perfection in such a pursuit is an exercise in futility.. 3321957

2008-11-12T18:10:48-05:00

Alexander05

Orlando 606431

99 Arash, I completey agree with you and am beginning to think some people simply fear change; this is the way things have been done for a while and it makes for exciting football so it must be good enough. Instead they should acknowledge that the current system is extremely flawed (granted every system devised will be to a certain extent) but this system simply cheats teams that deserve a shot at the title of undisputed champion. Also, if the BCS is suppoosed to match up the number 1 and 2 team in the nation, its still not doing that as can be witnessed in 2003 (USC and LSU co-champions) and other years. 3321986

2008-11-12T17:17:52-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/396/7/thumb/markazi_arash.jpg 118 CA

Arash Markazi

Los Angeles 3987

97 Great comments so far although it always fascinates me that it isn't just money hungry BCS commissioners that are opposed to a playoff system. Many fans are also opposed to a playoff system as well. That just boggles my mind considering the yearly controversy the BCS creates. I mean, unless these fans are just fans of college football and no other sport in America, I don't see how they would be opposed to a playoff. I mean I don't dislike the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, college basketball, etc. just because they have a playoff. It's the only way to have an undisputed champion, unless college football fans are still into that whole shared title thing or seeing the No. 1 or No. 2 ranked team not even play for a national championship at the end of the season. 3321358

2008-11-12T17:48:12-05:00

222

GlennAllen

Richmond 185259

Great comments so far although it always fascinates me that it isn't just money hungry BCS commissioners that are opposed to a playoff system. Many fans are also opposed to a playoff system as well. That just boggles my mind considering the yearly controversy the BCS creates. I mean, unless these fans are just fans of college football and no other sport in America, I don't see how they would be opposed to a playoff. I mean I don't dislike the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, college basketball, etc. just because they have a playoff. It's the only way to have an undisputed champion, unless college football fans are still into that whole shared title thing or seeing the No. 1 or No. 2 ranked team not even play for a national championship at the end of the season.

98 The only way we'll ever have an undisputed champion--or, really, a "least disputed" champion--is if every team has a fair chance to play for the championship, which will never happen as long as polls are used to decide who gets to play. 3321745

2008-11-12T17:17:52-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/396/7/thumb/markazi_arash.jpg 118 CA

Arash Markazi

Los Angeles 3987

2008-11-12T16:51:36-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/516/891/thumb/rat2.jpg 6 FL

takara

WinterPark 517331

96 say NO to the playoff idea: --with-- a playoff: i would have wanted USC over OregonState, and PennState over Iowa. why? i want my Gators to crush and humiliate the supposedly "powerful teams" in the Pac-10 and Big-10 on national tv. yet, i do like cheering for the underdog, so i would have been ok if OregonState and/or Iowa won. i really would not care. --without-- a "playoff": i was wetting my pants during the USC/OregonState and Iowa/PennState. after both games, i got drunk and did the Gator dance. in closing: those who whine about "its not fair! its not fair!!" must still be in college. cause, you know what? _life_ain't_fair_! so, shut-up and grow-up. OR, go watch the NFL. 3321249

2008-11-12T16:50:59-05:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/516/891/thumb/rat2.jpg 6 FL

takara

WinterPark 517331

95 say NO to the playoff idea: --with-- a playoff: i would have wanted USC over OregonState, and PennState over Iowa. why? i want my Gators to crush and humiliate the supposedly "powerful teams" in the Pac-10 and Big-10 on national tv. yet, i do like cheering for the underdog, so i would have been ok if OregonState and/or Iowa won. i really would not care. --without-- a "playoff": i was wetting my pants during the USC/OregonState and Iowa/PennState. after both games, i got drunk and did the Gator dance. in closing: those who whine about "its not fair! its not fair!!" must still be in college. cause, you know what? _life_ain't_fair_! so, shut-up and grow-up. OR, go watch the NFL. 3321244

2008-11-12T16:29:34-05:00

hornedfrog

No City 520602

94 Here is my view of a playoff that should happen. There are currently 34 bowl games and 5 BCS games with the fifth being the NC game, and there are about 4 weeks in which bowl games take place currently. Keep those 4 weeks, and do this: Week 1 1v16, 2v15, 3v14, 4v13, 5v12, 6v11, 7v10, 8v9 Have the 4 bowls that appear first in December also play that week Total bowls games week 1, 12 (8 playoff and 4 regular bowls) Week 2 cotton bowl, gator bowl, and 2 BCS games. BCS games can rotate in and out of this position Have the next 8 bowls in order of schedule also play that week Total bowl games week 1, 12 (4 playoff and 8 regualr bowls) Week 3 2 BCS bowls that switch out with the 2 from the previous week Have next 5 bowl games play that week also Total bowls week 3, 7 (2 playoff and 5 regular) Week 4 NC GAME!!! last 2 bowls on schedule before the bowls that are used in the first round of playoff Total bowl games week 4, 3 (the lower 2 bowl games this week just fill until NC game) I don't know why this wouldn't work, 16 team playoff with 15 games being used in that playoff, leaving 19 bowls left. Have those as filler TV games throughout the playoff schedule and everybody is happy. Although, there will be a few teams more not included in bowls because now there are 7 bowl games that reuse teams in the playoff, so thats 14 teams that would be left out, leaving 54 teams bowling. Nobody wanted 68 teams in bowl games anyway did they. 3320986

2008-11-12T16:17:22-05:00

222

GlennAllen

Richmond 185259

93 Wouldn't it be nice if all of the so-called "fans" would remember that the players really aren't out there on the field playing games in order to give those "fans" something watchable on TV because they're craving some "entertainment". Dear "fans"... it's not about you... none of it. What you think and who you want to see play whom is irrelevant; and if you really think that sports writers and the poll voters know more than you do, then... well, you have my pity. BCS = polls = BS. :D 3320859

2008-11-12T16:09:54-05:00

MST81

Rolla 606316

92 Arash, you???re absolutely right. We need to end the NCAA???s version of the Special Olympics: the bowl system. No more rewarding a team with a mere .500 season with a shiny bowl game. We need a real playoff system, just like division II college football. We will have four Super Regions and each region will have 6 playoff teams. Let???s be real, we don???t want no half-hearted playoff system. Each conference will get an automatic bid to the playoffs (we will count the Independents as a conference) and there will be three conferences per region. Region I will be the ACC, SEC, and Ind. Region II will be Big 10, Big 12, and MAC. Region III will be C-USA, Sun, and Big East. And finally Region IV will be WAC, Pac-10, and MW. Each region will be seeded with the 1st and 2nd seeds receiving a first round bye. Won???t this be exciting! Big 12, who cares that you could have five teams with 10 or more victories ??? the most you can send is four. But since you are lumped with the Big 10, you will only get three. Too bad Missouri, Oklahoma State and Michigan State, you???re not good enough for post season play. We want to watch Ball State, Ohio State, Penn State, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas Tech. For more fun, in Region IV we get to watch USC, Biose State, Utah, TCU, BYU, and Oregon State. We all know these teams are for more deserving than the teams left out of Region II. Region I teams will be Florida, Florida State, Navy, Alabama, Georgia, and LSU. Congratulations SEC, you get to send four teams because the other conferences in your region aren???t very good. The final six teams will be Tusla, Pittsburg, Louisiana-Lafeyatte, Cincinnati, Rice, and Troy from region III. Yes, with a playoff system like this, I can see you???re correct Arash. College football will be as exciting to watch as the NFL! When do we start the fantasy Leagues? 3320719

100

<div class="photo_container image_right"> <div class="photo"><img src="http://img.fannation.com/upload/si_blog_post_images/t1_1111_utah_icon.jpg" alt="T1_1111_utah_icon" width="298" height="410" /></div> <div class="photo_attributes">With no playoff, Utah has no chance for an NCAA title.</div> <div class="photo_attributes">Boyd Ivey/Icon SMI</div> </div> <p>I hate to harp on a the same topic two nights in a row but I need to say something after ESPN sought the opinion of Oregon president and chair of the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee <strong>David Frohnmayer</strong> regarding President-elect <strong>Barack Obama</strong>'s plea for a college football playoff last week.</p> <p>"We deeply respect the president-elect and we are glad that he is a fan of college football," Frohnmayer said in an e-mail. "We have the most compelling regular season in all of sports, and I'm sure that contributes to Senator Obama's enjoyment of our great game. My colleagues and I on the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee have discussed the future of postseason football on many occasions and we do not believe a playoff would be in the best interest of the sport, the student-athletes or our many other constituencies."</p> <p>Here's what Obama told me last week when I asked him where he stood on a college football playoff:</p> <p>"I've always believed that we should have a playoff system in college football. I'm not sure who came up with the idea for the BCS formula we use today, but to borrow a phrase I've used over and over on the campaign trail, it's time for a change. I'm tired of all the confusion and controversy that boils over at the end of every college football season, and I think an eight-team playoff would make a lot of sense."</p> <p>I think most American would agree with Obama that it's time for a change.</p> <p>The only ones that seem to be against it are the BCS commissioners profiting from the current archaic bowl format.</p> <p>Here's what really gets me about Frohnmayer and the seven other university presidents on this BCS Presidential Oversight Committee: as distinguished and intelligent as they appear to be, for some reason they continue to lie to the American public in order to keep things status quo.</p> <p>Let me once and for all (I promise) take a sledgehammer to Frohnmayer's two tired arguments.</p> <p>First, "We have the most compelling regular season in all of sports, and I'm sure that contributes to Senator Obama's enjoyment of our great game."</p> <p>No, Senator Obama's love of college football is what contributes to his enjoyment of your great game. His love of college basketball is also what contributes to his enjoyment of that great game. The fact that there is no playoff in college football does not contribute to his enjoyment at all. Not having a playoff in college football does not make the regular season more exciting, it makes it categorically unfair. Explain to Utah and Boise State, two undefeated teams that could turn out to be college football's version of George Mason or Davidson in a possible tournament, that they don't deserve a chance to play for a national championship. They could go undefeated year after year and never once even crack the BCS Top 5, but that and a possible trip to the Poinsettia Bowl are apparently supposed to be "compelling" to their fan base.</p> <p>Second, "We do not believe a playoff would be in the best interest of the sport, the student-athletes or our many other constituencies."</p> <p>If a playoff would not be in the best interest of the sport and the student-athletes, then please stop staging playoffs in every single other NCAA sport. No, seriously. If you truly believe that a playoff is somehow not in the best interest of the sport and the student-athletes, why would you think it would be in the best interest of every other sport and their student-athletes? Is there some sort of double standard here? Oh, I almost forgot about the last line of Frohnmayer's quote: "our many other constituencies." That's right, this has nothing to do with the sport and the student athletes that would thrive and benefit from a playoff, but everything to do with your many other constituencies that pay you big money to stage 33 bowl games that have no bearing on the national championship and one "national championship game" that is usually filled with more controversy and debate than any kind of consensus or decisiveness.</p> <p>Look, I understand that not having a playoff makes every regular-season game important, but that doesn't make it right. If you had an eight-team playoff, the regular season would be just as exciting. Think about it. Any team with two losses would essentially be eliminated from contention. The regular season wouldn't lose any excitement. After all, teams like Texas, Florida, Oklahoma and USC are still the national championship conversation despite having one loss, which by the way debunks the idiotic theory that the regular season is somehow a de facto tournament. Nothing would change, except that at the end of the season, instead of arguing which one or two teams are the best, we would find out the same way they do it in every other sport, on the field of play.</p> http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/396/7/thumb/markazi_arash.jpg 118 CA

Arash Markazi

Los Angeles 3987 22561 <div class="photo_container image_right"> <div class="photo"><img src="http://img.fannation.com/upload/si_blog_post_images/t1_1111_utah_icon.jpg" alt="T1_1111_utah_icon" width="298" height="410" /></div> <div class="photo_attributes">With no playoff, Utah has no chance for an NCAA title.</div> <div class="photo_attributes">Boyd Ivey/Icon SMI</div> </div> <p>I hate to harp on a the same topic two nights in a row but I need to say something after ESPN sought the opinion of Oregon president and chair of the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee <strong>David Frohnmayer</strong> regarding President-elect <strong>Barack Obama</strong>'s plea for a college football playoff last week.</p> <p>"We deeply respect the president-elect and we are glad that he is a fan of college football," Frohnmayer said in an e-mail. "We have the most compelling regular season in all of sports, and I'm sure that contributes to Senator Obama's enjoyment of our great game. My colleagues and I on the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee have discussed the future of postseason football on many occasions and we do not believe a playoff would be in the best interest of the sport, the student-athletes or our many other constituencies."</p> <p>Here's what Obama told me last week when I asked him where he stood on a college football playoff:</p> <p>"I've always believed that we should have a playoff system in college football. I'm not sure who came up with the idea for the BCS formula we use today, but to borrow a phrase I've used over and over on the campaign trail, it's time for a change. I'm tired of all the confusion and controversy that boils over at the end of every college football season, and I think an eight-team playoff would make a lot of sense."</p> <p>I think most American would agree with Obama that it's time for a change.</p>