Ralphandler1
Member
Well I thought I would get a thread going that is sure to get some people going. Last week the MWC sent the BCS a proposal for a eight team playoff. I for one am VERY against a 8(or more) team playoff for two reasons. First of all, I believe what makes college football so great is the fact that every game matters. Unlike EVERY SINGLE OTHER SPORT with a playoff, if you lose a game in college football, you may have lost a shot at the national championship. It is this pressure to perform week in and week out that makes this game the most passionate sport in America. Allowing 8 teams to have shots at the title will greatly diminish the importance of the regular season. If teams know they only need to be in the top 8 at the end of the year then what is their incentive to play big games in the pre-season? Games like Ohio State vs. USC or CU vs FSU would not occur as often because the schools would know they don't need a statement game to get a shot at the title. How about a quick example from this past year. Anyone remember watching the Texas Tech vs Oklahoma game? Tech was undefeated ranked #2, Oklahoma was ranked #5. If you remember back to that weekend it was a HUGE DEAL! The winner was going to go on to get a shot at the national title. (Oklahoma did in fact get that shot) The kind of intensity and pagentry this type of situation creates cannot be matched my any sport. However, if we had a playoff system that game was meaningless. Both teams would have been included in the 8 team playoff regardess of winning or losing. Niether team would have had any incentive to pull out all the stops and make it a great game. It would have been a more conservative and less exciting game. And on a side note I think we all agree after the butt kicking Tech took they had not business vying for a national title anyway. So the system worked.
The second point (then I'll stop with this really long post), is that when you look back has there ever been a year in the BCS when you can look at the top 8 and LEGITIMATLY think the #4,5,6,7 or 8 team had a claim that they were the best in the country? I am not talking about a #8 team that MAY have been able to pull an upset. I mean a #8 team that would give a top 2 team a run no matter when or where they played. As much as people complain the BCS has crowned the most deserving team MOST of the time.
I agree that our current system is not perfect, but a playoff would be terrible for college football. The only system I could get behind is a +1 system. Then the top 4 could have a shot (even though as I said before there has yet to be a situation where the #4 team really deserved it). If you go back and look at any year it becomes clear that usually only the top 2 deserves a shot at the title, but occasionally a third does ( for example Auburn or CU in 2001). A plus one would account for those situations when a third team has a legitimate chance without taking away much from the regular season. Of course if you allow 4 teams to play, inevitably the 5 team will complain they deserve a shot too. I think the issue is the last team that gets shut out, be it in the current system, a +1 or playoff bracket, will be upset they got left out. Sorry about the novel I wrote but hope you all enjoyed my rambling. Let me know your thoughts on a playoff, +1 system or keeping the BCS as is.
The second point (then I'll stop with this really long post), is that when you look back has there ever been a year in the BCS when you can look at the top 8 and LEGITIMATLY think the #4,5,6,7 or 8 team had a claim that they were the best in the country? I am not talking about a #8 team that MAY have been able to pull an upset. I mean a #8 team that would give a top 2 team a run no matter when or where they played. As much as people complain the BCS has crowned the most deserving team MOST of the time.
I agree that our current system is not perfect, but a playoff would be terrible for college football. The only system I could get behind is a +1 system. Then the top 4 could have a shot (even though as I said before there has yet to be a situation where the #4 team really deserved it). If you go back and look at any year it becomes clear that usually only the top 2 deserves a shot at the title, but occasionally a third does ( for example Auburn or CU in 2001). A plus one would account for those situations when a third team has a legitimate chance without taking away much from the regular season. Of course if you allow 4 teams to play, inevitably the 5 team will complain they deserve a shot too. I think the issue is the last team that gets shut out, be it in the current system, a +1 or playoff bracket, will be upset they got left out. Sorry about the novel I wrote but hope you all enjoyed my rambling. Let me know your thoughts on a playoff, +1 system or keeping the BCS as is.