Something has to be done with the way we determine major college football's champion. After the almighty LSU Tigers—against which no team could even take the field much less compete—were flat-out embarrassed by the conference's third-place team (see coach hoisting crystal at right) in last week's BCS Championship, SEC commissioner Mike Slive now admits (reluctantly, of course) that there may be a better way out there, and has begun discussions on an alternative system. Most likely it will be some form of a BCS-controlled "plus one" format, with an extra game being played after the BCS bowls, with teams being determined by the BCS. "The NCAA major college football title game. Brought to you by the letters B, C and S."It's 2012, and it's time for the injustice to stop.
NCAA major college football is the only men's or women's collegiate sport on any level where a school can win every one of its games and not be allowed to even play for a national championship. It's the only men's or women's collegiate sport on any level where the teams who play for its national title are determined by a vote rather than direct competition. And why is this? Because the people who are in control happen to be the people who benefit from the revenue it generates. So getting them to open their minds about an actual on-field playoff much less change them? About as likely as getting Egypt's royal family to embrace democracy.
There's a simple, fair and exciting option out there. A real playoff, to determine the division's first true national champion. A system that, if executed the way I propose, will cause nary a disturbance to the present state of the college football postseason. In all the debates and microanalyses, that's one factor most playoff proponents ignore. The trick isn't merely creating a flawless, utopian playoff structure. The trick is building a system that appeases the various unyielding forces who are in charge. The forces who want the bowl system to remain intact. The forces who want the Rose Bowl tie-ins to remain intact. The forces who don't want the season to go any deeper into January. In the end, the ultimate answer won't come to fruition through the science of statistical perfection but rather, the art of negotiation. One guiding principle drives the solution I am about to present: minimize the words and maximize the deeds. The difference between games and polls is that polls can be manipulated. Just ask Michigan. In 1997 the unbeaten and top-ranked Wolverines won the Rose Bowl (left) and DROPPED to #2 in the USA Today coaches poll. Second-ranked Nebraska had been campaigning for a share of the title as a going-away present for a retiring Tom Osborne, and it was revealed that a number of coaches had to drop Michigan to third on their ballots for it to happen.
A similar fate awaited the Wolverines in 2006 after their heartbreaking 42-39 loss in Columbus to #1 Ohio State, twenty-four hours after the sudden passing of coaching legend Bo Schembechler. While remaining #2 in the AP, the maize and blue ended their season ranked third in the BCS poll behind USC. One loss by the men of Troy was all they needed for a national championship rematch. When UCLA shocked the heavily favored Trojans, the title shot was seemingly theirs--until the nationally televised pleas of Florida coach Urban Meyer (right) after their convincing SEC championship win over Arkansas, convinced voters to move the Gators ahead of Michigan. Despite not playing, the 11-1 Wolverines fell out of contention for the BCS championship.
That wasn't right. It wasn't right when Oregon got the shaft in 2000, when Auburn's undefeated War Eagles were stood up in 2004, when Oklahoma State got left behind this past year, or when Boise State was passed over... perennially. A change is needed. So, in my humble opinion, I hereby submit the best idea out there: presenting The People's Blogger's Playoff! CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK (on the first weekend of December)
The point where it all begins, the championship games of all six Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) conferences—Pac 12, Big 12, SEC, ACC, Big 10 and Big East. Six of the NCAA college football national playoff's eight berths are at stake.
This is exactly what the conferences need. Enthusiasm has leaked from these games like so much air from an over-used spare. So much so that LSU prepared for last month's SEC championship game in Atlanta knowing they could lose and still play for the BCS title. They could actually rest their starters if they wanted. Oregon entered their PAC-12 championship "battle" with UCLA as a modest 31 1/2-point favorite. Absolutely ridiculous. Given that the Bruins were 6-6 and coming off a 50-0 loss to cross-town rival USC, the Ducks—who were also playing at home—should have been given the respect of a 35-point spread.
In my proposed playoff system, Championship Week would be transformed into the college football equivalent of six Game 7s. Each game inside a packed house, each at a neutral site, with the whole nation watching. Win and you're in, guaranteed. Can you imagine the excitement? The ticket demand? The TV ratings?
Then, once the six conference champions have been crowned, the two "at-large" berths can be awarded. These bids would ideally go to an undefeated or one-loss non-AQ (automatic qualifying) conference champion or independent. But a highly ranked FBS school who didn't win their conference for one reason or another could qualify as well (such as 11-1 Alabama from this past season). This may be the one instance where the polls could come in handy. The berths could simply go to the two highest ranked non-invites. Or there could be a threshold imposed (example: a non-AQ conference champion would need to be ranked in the top 10). I would give priority to any major college team who finished their season undefeated, but that's just me.
BOWL SEASON (mid-December through New Year's Day)Here's where many of the massive playoff overhauls miss the boat: YOU DON'T NEED TO CHANGE THE PRESENT BOWL SYSTEM. I'd prefer to have less than the current number of bowl games—a staggering thirty—but that's for others to decide. In my proposed playoff system, the bowl system remains intact. In fact, they culminate with The Granddaddy Of Them All, the Rose Bowl (left), which would STILL feature teams from the Big 10 and Pac 10. Once a team makes it to the conference championship, they know they're guaranteed of at least a trip to Pasadena. I'd like that.
THE NATIONAL QUARTERFINALS (the weekend closest to Christmas)
We have eight qualifying teams, with eight dissimilar paths to the national playoff. Much like the College World Series, these teams need to be re-seeded. The polls can be used, but I think this would be better handled using a more analytical basis. The NCAA basketball selection committee hems and haws and wrings their hands every March without much rancor, and that's a 64-piece puzzle they're building. Seeding eight teams, each of whom have played no more than a dozen or so games, shouldn't be too much of a problem.
At any rate, the significance of getting these seeds right cannot be understated. Why? Because the top four seeds will host each of the four national quarterfinal games.
Imagine this scenario. Top-seeded LSU hosts Virginia Tech in Baton Rouge. West Virginia travels to Tuscaloosa to take on the Crimson Tide. Oklahoma State welcomes Boise State and Kellen Moore (right) to Stillwater. And Wisconsin battles the mighty Ducks of Oregon. Yeah I know. But this time it's IN Oregon. Nothing beats the excitement of a football Saturday on a high-energy college campus, particularly when it's a matchup of highly ranked teams, right? Now add to that the specter of a berth in the national semifinal game. Then picture four of these games on the same weekend. Yeah, like that. [For those who think winter weather would be too much of a factor, a solution could be to hold these games at the nearest professional football venue to the home school's campus. These stadiums typically have heated fields and are otherwise equipped to handle the more severe seasonal effects. Anyway each FBS school would have a "playoff venue" assigned to it, should the team ever make it into the national playoff.]
THE NATIONAL SEMIFINALS (the weekend closest to New Year's Day)
Four teams have emerged from the quarterfinals. They have a week to get ready for the semis, which will be held at either the Sugar Bowl, the Orange Bowl or the Fiesta Bowl. These were the venues for the other three BCS bowl games (in addition to the Rose Bowl, which we've already discussed), which will host the national semifinals and national championship game on a rotating basis. So, not unlike the current system, every three years one of these bowls will host The Big One.
These games could be played much like they are played now, with the first semifinal immediately following the Rose Bowl and the second the next night. It may seem like Pasadena is being put on the undercard, but they've played that role for decades when the Orange Bowl was in its heyday.
THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (the second week of January)
The winners of the two national semifinals will get set to play their third game in as many weeks. But this time its for the NCAA national football championship. And when we're talking NCAA college football, the next national championship will be the first. This would be a true national championship game. There's nothing to be "shared". No split polls. No qualifying acronyms like AP. UPI. Or BCS. This belt's for the undisputed title.
The game is played after the first full week of January—pretty much the same time the BCS championship is currently played. I'd push for the second Saturday in January to be exact. The BCS title games get lost on a Tuesday, especially when they don't kick off until 9:00 or so, and continue long into the night. Play it the day before the NFL's conference championships, so there's no overlap. Drive the ratings through the roof. Get the world watching like they do for the Super Bowl. Or better yet, like Canada does for the Stanley Cup (left). Give them the chance to watch at least. I guarantee it would outdraw the current title game. So there it is. A system where the champs aren't chosen. Where the votes and voters vanish. Where a three- or four-loss school could win it all, but they'd have to put together a string of monumental upsets to do so... and each would be a classic, an indelible piece of college football history. The fans are ready for it. The schools are ready. The conferences are ready. The NCAA is ready. The world of intercollegiate sports is ready. But most of all, I'M ready!
