Jump to content

...why not a playoff system in 1a football?


slightly shotgunned

Recommended Posts

i've been asking this same question to people since the co-champion days of the early 90s, but i've been asking people who've all agreed with me so now i'd like to hear some actual arguments against my position.

With all the controversy that surrounds the bcs and many people feeling that the two best teams aren't always in the championship game, why not a playoff system in college football?

*note: for those of you that don't know in all of college sports (meaning, not just football) div 1a football is the only sport that does not decide its champion by some form of a tournament system...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 133
  • Created
  • Last Reply

I have no arguments against a playoff, but I do have an option as to how a playoff can be instituted.

- First off, narrow it down to only one ranking poll, and no more computer rankings.

- Begin with a 4 team playoff. Lets say we use the BCS rankings as they are and use the chronological order the bowls are in this year as a guide.

The Rose and Fiesta Bowls would be assigned as they would be normally.

#1 Ohio State vs. #4 Florida in the Orange Bowl

#2 USC vs. #3 Michigan in the Sugar Bowl

Lets say Ohio State and USC both win those games and would advance to the BCS National Championship Game on January 8th in Glendale, AZ.

I don't know if an idea like this would fly, but it's my only idea right now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

while i agree with you and like your incorporating the current bowls, i don't like the idea of a 4 team playoff.

it would be a nice start, but still, the field would have to be a little wider. say 16-32.

Using your idea, I say go with the top 24 teams in the top 25 and throw in 8 more from the top mid-major programs. use the bowls nobody watches as the first couple of rounds and use the bigger bowls for the later rounds. I think that would be a good idea...anyone disagree?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've always been in favor of a system where all 11 Conference Champions and 5 at larges play in a 16 team tournament (the at-larges would be determined by the BCS Rankings, for lack of anything better). Seeding would primarily be based on the BCS as well.

The First-Round Games would be played at the home of the top 8 seeds, the Quarterfinals would be played at the Outback, Capital One, Cotton, and Gator Bowls, the Semis and 3rd Place games would be played on a rotating basis between the Orange, Fiesta, and Sugar Bowls, and the National Championship game would be played in the Rose Bowl.

If you don't make the field of 16, but still want Bowl swag...fear not, for the other bowls will still be around for the teams that don't make the field.

On 8/1/2010 at 4:01 PM, winters in buffalo said:
You manage to balance agitation with just enough salient points to keep things interesting. Kind of a low-rent DG_Now.
On 1/2/2011 at 9:07 PM, Sodboy13 said:
Today, we are all otaku.

"The city of Peoria was once the site of the largest distillery in the world and later became the site for mass production of penicillin. So it is safe to assume that present-day Peorians are descended from syphilitic boozehounds."-Stephen Colbert

POTD: February 15, 2010, June 20, 2010

The Glorious Bloom State Penguins (NCFAF) 2014: 2-9, 2015: 7-5 (L Pineapple Bowl), 2016: 1-0 (NCFAB) 2014-15: 10-8, 2015-16: 14-5 (SMC Champs, L 1st Round February Frenzy)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have no arguments against a playoff, but I do have an option as to how a playoff can be instituted.

- First off, narrow it down to only one ranking poll, and no more computer rankings.

- Begin with a 4 team playoff. Lets say we use the BCS rankings as they are and use the chronological order the bowls are in this year as a guide.

The Rose and Fiesta Bowls would be assigned as they would be normally.

#1 Ohio State vs. #4 Florida in the Orange Bowl

#2 USC vs. #3 Michigan in the Sugar Bowl

Lets say Ohio State and USC both win those games and would advance to the BCS National Championship Game on January 8th in Glendale, AZ.

I don't know if an idea like this would fly, but it's my only idea right now.

Won't happen. You think the Rose and Fiesta Bowls will just give up their current prestige spots for giggles?

Anyway, I've proposed (since the mid-1990s no less!) a 32-team playoff system

11 Conference Champions

5 Conference Championship game losers

16 at-large teams determined by a selection committee

The committee will also seed the teams, and the playoff would go like this

First 2 rounds: Played at the higher seed's home field

Round of Eight: Played at Cotton, Gator, Fiesta*, and Holiday Bowls

Final Four and Championship Game: Rotated between Rose, Sugar, and Orange Bowls

The first round losers are also guaranteed a slot in one of the lesser bowl game in the latter part of December, and face teams not in the tournament.

*For compensation for getting booted out of the Title Game rotation, the Fiesta Bowl always hosts the Quarterfinals' top seeded team's game, as well as national primetime TV spot

[Croatia National Team Manager Slavan] Bilic then went on to explain how Croatia's success can partially be put down to his progressive man-management techniques. "Sometimes I lie in the bed with my players. I go to the room of Vedran Corluka and Luka Modric when I see they have a problem and I lie in bed with them and we talk for 10 minutes." Maybe Capello could try getting through to his players this way too? Although how far he'd get with Joe Cole jumping up and down on the mattress and Rooney demanding to be read his favourite page from The Very Hungry Caterpillar is open to question. --The Guardian's Fiver, 08 September 2008

Attention: In order to obtain maximum enjoyment from your stay at the CCSLC, the reader is advised that the above post may contain large amounts of sarcasm, dry humour, or statements which should not be taken in any true sort of seriousness. As a result, the above poster absolves himself of any and all blame in the event that a forum user responds to the aforementioned post without taking the previous notice into account. Thank you for your cooperation, and enjoy your stay at the CCSLC.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have no arguments against a playoff, but I do have an option as to how a playoff can be instituted.

- First off, narrow it down to only one ranking poll, and no more computer rankings.

- Begin with a 4 team playoff. Lets say we use the BCS rankings as they are and use the chronological order the bowls are in this year as a guide.

The Rose and Fiesta Bowls would be assigned as they would be normally.

#1 Ohio State vs. #4 Florida in the Orange Bowl

#2 USC vs. #3 Michigan in the Sugar Bowl

Lets say Ohio State and USC both win those games and would advance to the BCS National Championship Game on January 8th in Glendale, AZ.

I don't know if an idea like this would fly, but it's my only idea right now.

Won't happen. You think the Rose and Fiesta Bowls will just give up their current prestige spots?

My bad for not clarifying, but it would rotate as it does right now. So as the Championship Site changes, so would the 1 v. 4 and 2 v. 3 locales.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think a playoff is a must, but $$$$$$ will never let it. Also, I think the gap from the last game to the next game needs addressed. OSU isn't going to play in 1/2 of November and all of December until their championship game in Jan. Who has a six to eight week layoff either?

KISSwall09.jpg
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, it's about the money and so-called 'tradition' of the bowl games that prevent an FCS playoff system.

I say 'Screw that!' There can be a playoff system in this level and it would work.

Here is my plan.

In this playoff system, know as Seadragon's Plan, 12 teams compete in a single elimination tourny to decide the national champion.

First off, some ground rules...

-Only conference champions are eligible to compete in the playoffs.

-If Notre Dame, Army, or Navy has at least 8 wins (7 against FCS opponents), they are considered eligible (This is to prevent a half-assed season by one of these schools and they expect a bid).

-If none of these schools have the required 8 wins, then the runner-up of the Number 1 conference as determined by the Sagarin Ratings will be allowed to replace the Independent, provided that school has 8 wins themselves.

Now, the schedule for this plan..

-December 3rd: The football version of 'Selection Sunday'. The teams know where they go for the first round games of the tourny.

-December 9th: First round games begin with games on ESPN, ESPN2, ABC and Fox (Each network gets one game in the first two rounds, then Fox takes over for the Semifinals and the National Championship Game)

-December 16th: Quarterfinal Round

-December 25th (Christmas Day): Semifinal Games

-January 1st (New Year's Day): National Championship Game.

Now, what the matchups would currently be...

First Round:

-#12 Troy (Sun Belt Champion) vs. #5 Oklahoma (Big XII Champion)

-#11 Central Michigan (MAC Champion) vs. #6 Rutgers (Big East Leader)

-#10 Houston (C-USA Champion) vs. #7 Boise State (WAC Champion)

-#9 Michigan (At-Large) vs. #8 BYU (MWC Champion)

Quarterfinals:

-Troy/OU Winner vs. #4 Wake Forest (ACC Champion)

-Michigan/BYU winner vs. #1 Ohio State (Big Ten Champion)

-CMU /Rutgers Winner vs. #3 Florida (SEC Champion)

-Houston/BSU Winner vs. #2 USC (Pac 10 Champion)

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oh good it's that time of year again! I just love the hypothetical college playoff system thread every year. I also look forward to the realigning of the leagues for all the major sports that is sure to follow.

semperfi.gif

"It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the

press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of

speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us

the freedom to demonstrate. And it is the soldier who salutes the

flag, serves beneath the flag, whose coffin is draped by the flag, and

who allows the protester to burn the flag."

Marine Chaplain Dennis Edward O' Brien

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, these are college kids... maybe those extra weeks could be used.... studying for finals?

Like the schools care about educating the players... :rolleyes:

Seriously, I doubt there will be much need for the players to study for finals, as I doubt there is much need for them to do now.

On 8/1/2010 at 4:01 PM, winters in buffalo said:
You manage to balance agitation with just enough salient points to keep things interesting. Kind of a low-rent DG_Now.
On 1/2/2011 at 9:07 PM, Sodboy13 said:
Today, we are all otaku.

"The city of Peoria was once the site of the largest distillery in the world and later became the site for mass production of penicillin. So it is safe to assume that present-day Peorians are descended from syphilitic boozehounds."-Stephen Colbert

POTD: February 15, 2010, June 20, 2010

The Glorious Bloom State Penguins (NCFAF) 2014: 2-9, 2015: 7-5 (L Pineapple Bowl), 2016: 1-0 (NCFAB) 2014-15: 10-8, 2015-16: 14-5 (SMC Champs, L 1st Round February Frenzy)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, these are college kids... maybe those extra weeks could be used.... studying for finals?

The notion that the presidents, athletic directors, coaches and boosters at the majority of schools with Division 1-A football programs are against a playoff in order to preserve the academic integrity of their players is ludicrous. After all, Division 1-AA, 2 and 3 scholar/athletes participate in football playoffs and nobody is raising a fuss about those playoffs rendering "college kids" incapable of "studying for finals".

The fact of the matter is that the presidents, athletic directors, coaches and boosters at the majority of Division 1-A football-playing schools are against a playoff because the current bowl system allows a lot of less-than-stellar programs to crow about the fact that they "played in a bowl game". Even officials at Division 1-A football powerhouses know that they won't be able to capture a playoff title year-in and year-out, so they clutch on to a system that virtually guarantees that everyone but the most moribund programs will be able to claim a bowl berth.

There should be a single poll. The top 16 teams in the nation are seeded into a four-round, single-elimination playoff tournament. Said playoff system can either incorporate the names, locales and playing venues of the most storied bowls or not. If so, all playoff games are played at neutral sites. If not, the first through third rounds are played at the stadium of the higher-seeded team, with the championship final played at a rotating neutral site. Beyond the 16 teams that qualify for the playoff tournament, other schools can play in whatever meaningless bowls allow them to thump their chests and bray about being "Such-and-Such Bowl Champion".

Bottom line? The NCAA Division 1-A football championship squad should have to earn its title in a multi-round playoff just like the champs of the majority of other college sports have to do. Period.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

*note: for those of you that don't know in all of college sports (meaning, not just football) div 1a football is the only sport that does not decide its champion by some form of a tournament system...

I just want to point out that this is somewhat of a misnomer... There are some sports (D-II hockey, to name one) where there are not enough schools that sanction the sport (in D-II hockey, I believe the number is as low as 7, including just Minnesota-Crookston, St. Anselm's, Assumption, Franklin Pierce, St. Michael's, Southern New Hampshire, Stonehill).

Because there are so few schools, the NCAA will not sponsor a National Championship in D-II hockey. These schools often compete in D-III conferences (the ECAC East, ECAC Northeast and MCHA), which will not allow them to offer scholarships in order for it to be fair for them to compete with the D-III schools in the league. Problem is, once the season is over, often the schools are not elgeable for the conference tourneys, and they certainly aren't elegable for the D-III National Title. So, all that's left is to compete for a regular season conference crown.

Seems to me, that's quite a recruiting disadvantge for the D-II schools... Why would a kid pick, say Minnesota-Crookston over St. Scholastica (in Duluth, MN) when at one (UMC) he has no chance to play for a National Title, while at the other (SSC), he can? Plus no scholarship at either...

So, basic point - the arguement that D-IA football is the *only* sport that doesn't use a playoff is a bit lame. Sorry for the tangent. I think there should be a playoff too, but not because *everyone else* has one...

Moose

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, these are college kids... maybe those extra weeks could be used.... studying for finals?

Finals would be over at this point. These games would all be happening during Winter Break, which comes right after the end of the first term.

IUe6Hvh.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't understand the need to have a D-1 football playoff. There are people who obsess about this as if their lives are somehow unfulfilled by not having a champion declared on the field.

If Florida wins the SEC and a major bowl game (making a ton of money along the way), but does not play for a national title (by playoff or poll), isn't that still a successful season?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

First off, let me just say I agree with all of you totally about the need for a playoff in college football, but I don't necessarily agree with people calling for a 32-team or 16-team field. I think the perfect number for playoff teams is either 8 or 4, with the top 8 ranked schools REGARDLESS OF CONFERENCE get in the tourney. The first round would be played at some regional sites (Houston, New Orleans, Atlanta, etc). Then the second round would consist of two of the major bowls (Rose, Cotton, Sugar, Orange). And then the winners would play the following week in Glendale, AZ. The reason I say 8 teams is that the teams that advance to the finals only have to play 2 more games, whereas with a 32-team playoff, that adds 4 extra games to a team's schedule. Imagine being an SEC team who had to gop through all the SEC regular-season schedule, the SEC championship game, and 4 more games of playoffs just to get to the title game. At least 8 teams is reasonable. That way a team like Rutgers could finish undefeated and there'd be no doubt that they could make the playoffs.

espnsig.gif
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yea, I've been thinking a playoff system would be great, especially this season. There are (were) a bunch of teams that could be a #2 team (less now but there were about 5 a week ago). It would be exciting to see them all battle it out.

My idea would be to have a 10 team tournament. It would work out well because there are 10 BCS teams. The 6 BSC conference winners would get automatic bids. Then there would be 4 at-large bids. You could also make the 4 second round games the BCS bowls (Rose, Orange, Sugar, and Fiesta). Or maybe add a fifth bowl and have them each rotate as the National Championship.

The only real problem, I see so far is the first round byes. However I'm not too sure if that really matters. Because right now the National Championship would probably be Ohio State vs. USC, right now USC will play[ the past last weeks and Ohio State won't.

Anyway I have my bracket made up, I'll post it sometime Saturday night or Sunday morning after the season is over. Mostly to see what other people think.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My Playoff System:

The Basics:

-Add one Division I-AA team* to make it 120 even.

-Split the 120 teams into two groups of 60.

-Split the 60 teams into four Conferences of 15 in both groups**.

-Five of the 15 teams make it to the playoffs (Forty teams in all.)

*If Temple deserves to be Division I-A then so does whoever this is going to be, just pick the Division I-AA National Champion.

**So anyone who thinks Notre Dame should finally join a Conference will have their wish fulfilled.

The Games:

-The 40 teams will be ranked based on record, then Conference standings, and then schedule strength and then if any tie-breakers are needed after that I will think of some. Remember there are two "groups" but it's the same system for each one.

-Teams ranked #1-10 get Bye weeks. The others play each other like this:

11-20

12-19

13-18

14-17

15-16

-The winners then play 1-10, there is no re-ranking.

-This will continue until we reach the last team in each group and they will play for the National Championship.

nyg1-sm.gifrangers2-sm.gifyankees4-sm.gifknicks-sm.gif

mysigdj9.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.




×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.