The Official National Championship game Thread

[Guest]

you and dsgitlin put undefeated at the most important part of college football.

How ridiculous of us to value winning all your games in sports! WE ARE IDIOTS

If that becomes the norm, teams will start creating easy schedules so they can go undfeated and make the BCS Championship. If going undefeated against crappy teams is that important, why doesn't Michigan schedule Bowling Green, UNLV, Eastern Michigan, Louisana-Lafayette, and Temple as their non-conference schedule. Oh but then Michigan is undefeated so they should be National Champions.

Which is why I think schools should not be allowed to do this. If you're in one of the Chosen Conferences that is allowed by the system to win a national championship, why the hell do you get to play teams that aren't allowed to? Explain this to me. Seriously. What's the point of Bowling Green playing Michigan if Bowling Green has nothing to gain from the win? Just so they can have the honor of playing mighty Michigan? Vanderbilt may suck hard, but at least they're allowed to contend for a title. Play them; leave the mid-majors alone. Let Boise State play amidst the mid-majors and nobody else if all they're going to get is a pat on the head when they win a BCS game to finish a perfect season. Better yet, test a playoff system with the mid-majors and leave the "power conferences" to dick around with declaring the National Power Ranking Leader.

You should NEVER be allowed to have a split championship unless you'd also like to have two Presidents of the United States, two American Idols, two gold medal winners at the Olympics, or two World Cup Champions.

That's right, but under this fine, fine system of ours, it's possible, so...

[Telemundo219]

I generally don't follow NCAA football, so take this for what it's worth.

Here's my idea for a playoff system to replace the BcS.

Regular Season

1) Abolish pre-season rankings

Sold.

You guys are so right. There should be NO pre-season poll.What are the preseason polls based on? Not preseason games. These polls are just based on expectations and prestige/repatation of the teams. Then when who have voters who can control the fates of teams, you get things happening like #4 Florida hopping #3 Michigan in the the last polls of the season (well I'm happy that happened). Teams should be ranked based on the stats of the players they have compared to the stats of players from all the NCAA Div-1 teams and also with the amount of top recruits they get.

Also teams should be given balanced schedule. There should be a system of schedule points. Every school gets equal amount of schedule points and they should schedule games based on it. Teams will get a certain points based on repitation and their results from the previous season. The maximum points for a school to get will be between 15 and 20 nad the total points for the season will be between 140-150. Every school will have 12 games to fill all those points. For example, Florida just won the BCS NAtional Championship and are nationally known they will get 20 points so that is between 120 and 130 points left for the schedule of a team playing them. This is only a concept. I really haven't thought of something yet that will perfectly fix the situaion that the BCS and the polls seem to create at the end of every season.

[IceCap]

If that becomes the norm, teams will start creating easy schedules so they can go undfeated and make the BCS Championship. If going undefeated against crappy teams is that important, why doesn't Michigan schedule Bowling Green, UNLV, Eastern Michigan, Louisana-Lafayette, and Temple as their non-conference schedule. Oh but then Michigan is undefeated so they should be National Champions.

Which is why I think schools should not be allowed to do this.

Bingo! For all you anti-playoff peeps out there, here is the answer to your "teams will just create easier schedules" argument. You let the NCAA operate like the NFL and almost every other sports league. You let the NCAA make the schedules, not the schools. Problem solved.

And last time I checked, the point to sports was to win. Therefore shouldn't a team that went 12-0 at least get a shot at the national championship?

Oh, and BTW I don't hate the Gators. I don't follow any NCAA sport, save for hockey. I have no opinion regarding the Gators, or most other teams for that matter.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

What's the point of Bowling Green playing Michigan if Bowling Green has nothing to gain from the win? Just so they can have the honor of playing mighty Michigan?

You've highlighted the other major flaw of college football; it's about money first and competition second. University at Buffalo's athletic department survives based on their football team showing up at place like Wisconsin just to get slaughtered. However, they get a $150,000 or so appearance fee and so for them, it's worth it. It's worth it to them, but a total joke for the rest of us.

For all of the NCAA's interference in the lives of student athletes, perhaps they can interfere a bit more in the scheduling and competition practices of the major schools they split all of the network revenue with. In their own way, every national champion is tainted until the playing field is more equitable.

[Guest]

polls are just based on expectations and prestige/repatation of the teams.

Teams will get a certain points based on repitation

Unless repitation is different from repatation, which are both different from reputation, isn't this contradictory? You're saying Notre Dame shouldn't get a high ranking because it's Notre Dame, but you're giving them "schedule points" because they're Notre Dame? You're on to something, but it has to be entirely objective.

Another good point, dsgitlin. There's just so much wrong with college football from an organizational standpoint. It's a mess. How can the NCAA do basketball so well and football so very poorly?

You let the NCAA make the schedules, not the schools. Problem solved.

That'd be great, but it's pratically impossible that ADs will cede control to a central power. In the meantime, I think they should write their own schedules, but can only schedule games with schools in the Big East, ACC, Big 10, Big XII, Pac-10, and SEC. It'll be "The Race To Play U of I."

Oh, and BTW I don't hate the Gators. I don't follow any NCAA sport, save for hockey. I have no opinion regarding the Gators, or most other teams for that matter.

Same here. I find it's much easier, dare I say only possible, to criticize the NCAA when you're a disinterested party.

[HedleyLamarr]

Also teams should be given balanced schedule. There should be a system of schedule points. Every school gets equal amount of schedule points and they should schedule games based on it. Teams will get a certain points based on repitation and their results from the previous season. The maximum points for a school to get will be between 15 and 20 nad the total points for the season will be between 140-150. Every school will have 12 games to fill all those points. For example, Florida just won the BCS NAtional Championship and are nationally known they will get 20 points so that is between 120 and 130 points left for the schedule of a team playing them. This is only a concept. I really haven't thought of something yet that will perfectly fix the situaion that the BCS and the polls seem to create at the end of every season.

How do you propose scheduling 119 equally balanced schedules? And how will this solve the end-of-season debates about strength-of-schedule?

Division 1-A will never go to a playoff system because of their long-standing traditions, from bowl games to rivalries. For most conferences, winning the conference championship is more important than winning the National Championship.

[slightly shotgunned]

and i'm sorry if it bothers you that it pisses me off so much. i just don't know how you see it as being fair to the players of teams like this who work their asses off all year long, go undefeated, and in the end, have nothing to show for it.

It doesn't bother me at all. You stalk my posts enough to know that I have said all along that Boise State deserved a shot at the title. A playoff won't solve that. If there were even a 16 team playoff in place Boise would not have been chosen because of the "weak schedule" argument. If you think Boise would have gotten in over a "name" team you're high. No way does some selection committee pick Boise for a playoff over teams like LSU, Notre Dame, Auburn, etc. The very argument that is being used against Boise in this thread is the one that would be used against them come playoff time. "Weak schedule, weak conference, weak opponents." Just ask yourself this question. If a playoff existed and it came down to choosing Boise or Michigan who do you think the committee would choose? Don't forget that dollars and ratings are going to play a part in the process.

As I said before, all a playoff would do is put the same old argument in a different context. We'd still be arguing about someone getting screwed. Think I'm wrong? Watch selection Sunday come basketball tournament time. Then come here and look for the "teams that got screwed" thread.

Someone from either the BCS or NCAA said yesterday that they are very open to a plus-one format but that a playoff just ain't gonna happen.

first, get over yourself. it just happens to be a coincidence that everytime i have an interest in a thread you've already said something i feel the need to show you the other side of. second, i'm trying to make millions of dollars, but i think there's a minimum age requirement when it comes to sports and they want someone with experience and its kind of hard to gain any experience when you're turned down for lack of experience.

all jokes aside, a 16 team playoff this year (according to the bcs rankings before the bowls started) would have consisted of: 1. ohio state 2. florida 3. michigan 4. lsu 5. usc 6. lousville 7. wisconson 8. boise state 9. Auburn 10. oklahoma 11. notre dame 12. Arkansas 13. West Virginia 14. Wake Forest 15. Virginia Tech 16. Rutgers teams left out: 17. tennessee 18. cal 19. Texas 20. byu 21. Texas A&M 22. Oregon State 23. Nebraska 24. Boston College 25. ucla.

that's if we went by the bcs ranking system. if we took the teams that won their conference with 5 wildcard slots we have these teams in automatically: ohio state (big ten), flordia (sec), usc (pac10), oklahoma (big12), wake forest (acc), Louisville (big east), central michigan (mac), troy (sun belt), houston (c-usa), byu (mountain west), boise state (wac) and these teams fighting for the remaining 5 spots: michigan, lsu, usc, wisconson, auburn, notre dame, arkansas, virginia tech, etc.

so in both cases, boise state gets in. i will say that i see a MAJOR flaw in having all 11 conferences getting automatic bids to a playoff, but the only way boise state doesn't get in to a playoff is if there is a four team playoff.

to answer your question, no doubt in my mind it would be michigan. but if we're going to play the weak schedule card, then like so many other people have said, we can go ahead and tell the power teams that they aren't allowed to play non-bcs school anymore. i haven't forgotten that this is a dollars and cents institution, that's why i'm so adamant about bringing about a change. i hate the fact that in the end, this whole thing comes down to the profit margin.

For most conferences, winning the conference championship is more important than winning the National Championship.

that's because for five of div1 football conferences, the conference championship is the ONLY championship they're allowed to win.

[jkrdevil]

What's the point of debating if Boise State should be the champions? They played a FAR easier schedule, neither poll had them close to Florida, the coach even said Florida was better. END OF STORY! Gators are Champs! The only people who are claming Boise State should win are people who hate the Gators. So they're biased. They'd claim LSU, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, or Polk High School as more deserving of the title than Florida.

The point is to point out how ridiculously stupid and against everything sports is about the college football system is. I don't think there is another sport on the planet that crowns it's "champion" based on human voting polls. Sure playoffs aren't used in every sport but those sports that don't use playoffs go by best record in this case is Boise State.

There is a reason why I posted that fake Super Bowl III according to college football is because it is a situation that pretty much parallels this. You had the Baltimore Colts (today's Gators) who pretty much dominated the NFL that year beating the Cleveland Browns 34-0 in the Championship Game. Meanwhile you Had the Jets in the disrespected AFL (Boise State and the WAC), who barely got by the Raiders in the AFL championship on a 4th quarter TD. Had this been College Football the Colts would have been voted unanimous World Champions. As was though they were heavy heavy favorites in the Super Bowl. You probably know what happened not only did the Jets win but they pretty much dominated the game by just running down the Colts thought. The point is people are wrong, quite often. And that's why voting on a "National Champion" is the absolutely one of the worst way to decide a national champion. The only other way worst is to just picking a team out of hat.

Would Boise probably get killed by Florida? Yes, but you never know there have been bigger upsets. That's why you play (or should) play the game. A playoff where every conference champion (you have to officially treat all the conferences the same) get a birth with a few at larges is a must for college football. Right now the system is a joke.

It also should be noted that the NCAA, the governing body of college sports, does not recognize the BCS champion as National Champions. They do not award a national champion in D-I A football so thus calling any D-I A team a National Champion is a misnomer and is false.

[slightly shotgunned]

It also should be noted that the NCAA, the governing body of college sports, does not recognize the BCS champion as National Champions. They do not award a national champion in D-I A football so thus calling any D-I A team a National Champion is a misnomer and is false.

if that's true...where'd you get that info from?

[Fred T. Jane]

It also should be noted that the NCAA, the governing body of college sports, does not recognize the BCS champion as National Champions. They do not award a national champion in D-I A football so thus calling any D-I A team a National Champion is a misnomer and is false.

O RLY?

The NCAA does not conduct a national championship in Division I-A football and is not involved in the selection process. Since 1998, the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) has conducted a contest between it's two top-ranked teams to determine a national champion. More information on the BCS is available at their Web site.

A number of polling organizations also provide a final ranking of Division I-A football teams at the end of each season. Below is a year-by-year history of Division I-A football national champions as determined by the BCS championship game and these polling organizations. More information on national poll rankings is available in the Division I-A section of the NCAA Division I-A/I-AA Football Records Book (found here.)

Because nothing says "we don't recognize a national champion from the BCS or anyone else" like a link on your official website with a listing of past national champions, as well as an additional listing of said national champions in your official record book, nicht wahr?

[slightly shotgunned]

It also should be noted that the NCAA, the governing body of college sports, does not recognize the BCS champion as National Champions. They do not award a national champion in D-I A football so thus calling any D-I A team a National Champion is a misnomer and is false.

O RLY?

The NCAA does not conduct a national championship in Division I-A football and is not involved in the selection process. Since 1998, the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) has conducted a contest between it's two top-ranked teams to determine a national champion. More information on the BCS is available at their Web site.

A number of polling organizations also provide a final ranking of Division I-A football teams at the end of each season. Below is a year-by-year history of Division I-A football national champions as determined by the BCS championship game and these polling organizations. More information on national poll rankings is available in the Division I-A section of the NCAA Division I-A/I-AA Football Records Book (found here.)

Because nothing says "we don't recognize a national champion from the BCS or anyone else" like a link on your official website with a listing of past national champions, as well as an additional listing of said national champions in your official record book, nicht wahr?

i also see the ncaa making a point to make sure that people realize that they have nothing to do with the bcs championship. yes, they recognize the champion as determined by the bcs, but they're not actually calling them the NCAA national champions.

[Fred T. Jane]

i also see the ncaa making a point to make sure that people realize that they have nothing to do with the bcs championship. yes, they recognize the champion as determined by the bcs, but they're not actually calling them the NCAA national champions.

They're NCAA-member institutions who win the title of national champion through a system for their division, and said champions are recognized as such by the NCAA in their official publications and record books as national champions. And by doing all of that, that doesn't make them NCAA national champions?

Interesting.

[slightly shotgunned]

The NCAA does not conduct a national championship in Division I-A football and is not involved in the selection process.

Division I-A football national champions as determined by the BCS championship game and these polling organizations

[Jigga]

BUT THE NCAA STILL RECOGNIZES THE BCS CHAMPION AS THEIR NATIONAL CHAMPION!!!!11eleven

[slightly shotgunned]

the wording implies the :edit: bcs' national champion, not their national champion.

heavy law and political science class influences here, but thats just how it reads.

if the ncaa recognized the bcs national champion as their national champion, there would no need for the distinction.

[sscrunner06]

So who's the national champion again??

[TFoA]

Florida won the BCS Championship. And even by the split national championship theory that USC and LSU shared in 04, BSU still wouldn't get that, because Florida won all the polls.

So yeah, besides, since when is the BCS National Champion NOT recognized by the NCAA as National Champions? Who's gonna recognize em, the NAIA?

But I do agree with the notion that the preseason polls are stupid and should be abolished with the quickness.

[Fred T. Jane]

So yeah, besides, since when is the BCS National Champion NOT recognized by the NCAA as National Champions? Who's gonna recognize em, the NAIA?

Everyone except the people here who are divorced from reality.

Put it this way; Ohio State beats Florida, and none of these threads will be up. Instead, the same folks will be giving the ESPN Treatment to Ohio State without a blink to whether they are the "true" national champions or not according to the overwrought definitions they keep on trying to set up.