The Mayans Couldn't Figure Out College Football Playoffs, Sadly
It's my favorite time of year. It's not so much a matter of
stocking up on my "special" supply of eggnog, hot chocolate and
cider. It's not so much a matter of enduring bad Lifetime holiday-themed
movies. It's not even about commiserating over family dysfunction during a time
that's supposed to be filled with positive personal reflection and cheer.
When it comes to the NCAA Division I football national
championship, it's again time to debate the fairness of the Bull Crap Series,
errr, umm, Bowl Championship Series. I won't say Notre Dame or Alabama isn’t
deserving to play for the national title. While many SEC fans voice their
confidence in romping the Knute Rocknes, or even claiming the Irish don't
belong in the final match, Notre Dame did its job. It went undefeated, even
grinding out wins when the outcome wasn't so sure.
And oh, Crimson Tide. They did lose a game at home. It's not
like last year where they failed to win the SEC championship yet got to the BCS
title game and secured a victory. But no matter. They found a way into the
final championship contest this year. However, we're two years away from a
semblance of an overdue Division I college football "playoff system."
It's fun to ponder "what ifs" -- what if a computer didn't help to
arbitrarily determine the two teams that'll play for a national championship?
Again, Alabama and Notre Dame may have proven they've been
among the best two schools to play this season, wire to wire. The title game
looks to be better than many of you think. (I'm looking at you, SEC fan.) But
aside from a couple of other bowl games this season, the undercard looks rather
underwhelming. Consider No. 4 Florida taking on Big East champion Louisville,
which was unranked prior to their conference title match. Look at unranked
Wisconsin run roughshod over a ranked Nebraska squad in the Big 10 championship
game and secure a Rose Bowl berth. Then, there are the college football
elitists complaining about Northern Illinois crashing the party and snagging an
Orange Bowl berth. The Huskies did their job. They won and won well. Don't hate
the program, hate the current system.
Consider the Sun Bowl featuring a losing team in Georgia
Tech against a bunch of underachievers, USC. Two teams with 6-6 marks -- Rice and
Air Force -- will be mired in the Armed Forces Bowl while Pittsburgh meets Ole
Miss in the BBVA Compass Bowl. We're talking ratings gold barnburners here. And
through the bedlam of Selection Sunday, Louisiana, Tech, the nation's
highest-scoring team that won nine games and had a sniff of Top 25 fame, didn't
get chosen for any of the 35 or 102 bowl games, whatever the number is
nowadays. (It didn't help when the Bulldogs got too big for their britches and,
reportedly, said "nyet" to going to the nearby Independence Bowl for
the possibility of what could've been a decent all-Louisiana affair in
UL-Monroe).
The “powers that be” that help to determine BCS and non-BCS
bowl contestants are primarily television executives and power conference
presidents who only want to see and sell sex when it comes to bowl games.
They'd rather arbitrarily pair two traditional powerhouses via a computer
rather than let rising star schools settle such questions where it truly
counts: on the playing field. Just like virtually every other level of sport.
Wow. What a startling concept. Even the Kazahkistani kick-goathead league has a
playoff. I’ve won some money there. I've lost a lot more there. Without the
NCAA basketball tournament, schools like George Mason and Butler likely would
have never made it to the Final Four. You see Gonzagas and Marquettes make
their mark on the national scene. Without the College World Series, schools
like Cal State-Fullerton and Long Beach State -- not so much a Texas or USC --
get to shine and quite often.
In most existing playoff systems/postseason tournaments, the
most "deserving" teams make the playoffs, not necessarily the ones
picked "the best." There's a difference. We can debate all we want
about good losses, bad losses, strength of schedule, etc., during the regular
season, but when it comes down to the nitty gritty to determine an absolute
champion, why not go the way of a tournament?
Well, we won’t waste further time going into the minds of
those myopically opposed to a NCAA Division I tournament of some kind. Even the
“bowl games are a tradition” and “schools will lose money” and “you can’t make
the student-athletes play that long or late into January” philosophies. None of
those arguments really work. Never did, never will. Some say the BCS isn’t
perfect, but that it’s a start.
So, what if a playoff system did exist for college football?
My goodness, what fun that’d be. OK, let’s use dying BCS as a springboard. This
is what I'd do to create a 16-team tournament. You start with automatic champions
from 11 FBS (Football Championship Series) conferences (regular-season champs
and/or championship game victors). There is the thought that if an annual
playoff system is allowed to mature, conference championship games might become
relevant. That's fine. Until then let's play with what we have.
If there are co-champions, it’s up to the affected
conference to determine who gets what we’ll call an FBS bid. You could combine
the final regular season total average poll ranking with regular-season head-to-head
outcomes for a tie-breaker. (Sound unfair? Good. You get to retain some
semblance of unfairness in the process of arriving at a final national
champion)
You could average the rankings of the AP, ESPN, USA Today,
Harris, Legends and Coaches' polls, emphasizing which schools get the most
place votes and arrive at a final aggregate Top 25 poll (a de facto BCS ranking
system, if you will, without the computer interference). Those are arguably the
strongest, long-standing, most popular and credible of Division I polls. And
you get to a beautiful bracket like the one above (courtesy of NCAA). Isn't it
gorgeous and awe-inspiring?
Here’s what a final 2012 FBS aggregate poll would look like:
1. Notre Dame (12-0)
2. Alabama (12-1) (SEC champion)
3. Oregon (11-1)
4. Florida (11-1)
5. Georgia (11-2)
6. Kansas State (11-1) (Big 12 champion)
7. Stanford
(11-2) (Pac-12 champion)
8. LSU (10-2)
9. Texas A&M (10-2)
10. South Carolina (10-2)
11. Oklahoma (10-2)
12. Florida State (11-2) (ACC champion)
13. Oregon State (9-3)
14. Clemson CL(10-2)
15. Boise State (10-2) (Mountain West co-champion)
16. Northern Illinois (12-1)
(MAC champion)
17. Nebraska (10-3)
18. UCLA (9-4)
19. Michigan (8-4)
20. Louisville (10-2) (Big East champion)
21. Northwestern (9-3)
22. Utah State (10-2) (WAC champion)
23. Texas (8-4)
24. San Jose State (10-2)
25. Kent State (11-2)
Wisconsin (Big 10 champion)
Arkansas State (Sun Belt champion)
Tulsa (Conference USA champion)
Ultimately, FBS automatic bids would go to Alabama, Kansas
State, Stanford, Florida State, Boise State (highest ranked co-champion of
MWC), Northern Illinois, Louisville, Utah State, Wisconsin, Arkansas State and
Tulsa.
You add the top independent team ranked high enough overall
in polls for an FBS bid and/or four (or five) other highest-ranked schools,
overall in polls. So this year these schools get an at-large bid: Notre Dame,
Oregon, Florida, Georgia and LSU.
The ultimate FBS tournament seedings in a 16 vs. 1, 15 vs.
2, 14, vs. 3, etc. format would be:
1. Notre Dame
2. Alabama
3. Oregon
4. Florida
5. Georgia
6. Kansas State
7. Stanford
8. LSU
9. Florida State
10. Boise State
11. Northern Illinois
12. Louisville
13. Utah State
14. Wisconsin
15. Tulsa
16. Arkansas State
Take into account the oldest, popular, most lucrative,
traditional bowls and mix in some regional flair and considerate schedules. You
can keep some of the best bowls. (I mean, really. The glut of bowls is
ludicrous. More and more are added each year, some from inauspicious sponsors.
Does anyone care to see the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl?
Oooh, must-see. No offense, Michigan State and TCU, but really? The Buffalo
Wild Wings Bowl, formerly Insight Bowl-turned-Valley of the Sun Bowl? I like
dining at BWW, not watching its sponsored bowl games. Beef O'Brady's Bowl, that
standard-bearer of non-BCS bowl games, this year has...meh, who gives a crap.
If we ignore the Meineke Care Care Bowl of Texas, featuring - inexplicably -
Texas Tech and Minnesota (how did they get a bid), does that game cease to
exist? And Heart of Dallas Bowl? Seriously? Oh, we could so perpetuate a
Roady's Truck Stops FreeCreditReport.com Pomegranate Cherry Salad Bowl
presented by Franklin American Mortgage Company joke.
All joking aside, use 15 of those prestigious, richest, most
famous (i.e. powerful, established) bowls as the FBS bowl matches. All other
bowls… yes, even your precious Idaho Potato, Bell Helicopter Armed Forces,
GoDaddy.com… may remain independent and ongoing aside from the FBS contests. No
changes needed there.
Rotate the FBS bowls as quarterfinal, semifinal and final
games, all of which could retain and maybe even increase the number of
ticket-buyers, TV viewers and payouts. One reason? There’s even greater
incentive to play in such a bowl. Not just one bowl. But a series of true
head-to-head games where all the conference champions (not just the typical,
known powerhouses) and other top-ranked squads have a genuine (and fair) shot
at an undisputed national title. Throw in serious regional consideration and
voila. Imagine that!
The younger, Decemberish bowls host quarterfinals on
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, given this year’s calendar:
December 12
Tulsa vs. Alabama -- Advocare V100 Independence Bowl;
Shreveport
Arkansas State vs. Notre Dame -- Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
(Insight, Copper, whatever else it used to be); Tempe
Dec. 13
Florida State vs. LSU -- Chick-Fil-A (Peach) Bowl, Atlanta
Boise State vs. Stanford -- Hyundai Sun Bowl, El Paso
Dec. 14
Louisville vs. Georgia -- Taxslayer.com (Taxslayer.com?)
Gator Bowl, Jacksonville
Northern Illinois vs. Kansas State -- Valero Alamo Bowl, San
Antonio
Dec. 15
Utah State vs. Florida -- AutoZone Liberty Bowl, Memphis
Wisconsin vs. Oregon -- Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl,
San Diego
Probable winners?
Alabama, Notre Dame, Stanford, Florida State, Georgia,
Kansas State, Florida, Oregon
More bowls in Thursday and Friday semifinals involve 1-16
vs. 8-9; 5-12 vs. 4-13; 6-11 vs. 3-14; 7-10 vs. 2-15.
Dec. 20
Florida State vs. Notre Dame -- Capital One (Citrus) Bowl,
Orlando
Stanford vs. Alabama -- AT&T Cotton Bowl, Dallas
Dec. 21
Kansas State vs. Oregon -- Fiesta Bowl, Tempe
Georgia vs. Florida -- Outback Bowl, Tampa
Probable winners?
Notre Dame, Stanford, Kansas State, Georgia
Final Four of sorts/Tuesday, Jan. 1
Stanford vs. Kansas State -- Sugar Bowl, New Orleans
Georgia vs. Notre Dame -- Orange Bowl, Miami
Championship game, Monday, Jan. 7
Rose Bowl, Pasadena
Kansas State vs. Georgia
Who wins? Well, let this unfold in reality. I recall how a
House subcommittee approved legislation in late 2009 aimed at forcing college
football to switch to a playoff system to determine a national champion, over
the objections of some lawmakers who said Congress had more pressing matters on
its plate. To those naysayers, I say: screw war and the national debt, let’s
have some MACtion.
