COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Make your your PLAYOFF proposals inside!

[MadRat]

The BCS system has its flaws. Nebraska (hurrah!) made the title game this year over two other (Oregon and Colorado) deserving teams. Almost every fan really wants a Dv1 football playoff. The players mostly want it. The media surely wants it. The universities somewhat have toyed with it. Its just time to start considering the potential of a playoff system and how to do the games fairly.

I propose this playoff:

1. 10-game regular seasons; more than enough for perrenial losers!

2. Allow for UP TO a two-game conference championship, regulated by the conferences.

3. Give the other teams above .500 an eleventh game through some NIT lottery system.

4A. An "Elite 8" field is chosen for the "Run to the National Championship". Selections done by a computer ranking similar to the current BCS selection system.*

4B. "Minor Bowl" invitations go out to sixteen (or maybe twenty) >.500 record teams that do not make "Run to the National Championship".

5. The "Run to the National Championship" playoffs hosted in select regional cities. If a nearby team is in the tourney then they can play their game in that city ONLY if they have more power points, else a national committee decides the location among available hosts.

6. The "National Championship" game played in a neutral city that bids for the game (versus the current BCS system) in order to maximize revenue.

* = NOTE: Allow teams to bypass potential bids for the "Race for the National Championship" in order to play in select "Minor Bowl" games. This allows teams that know they cannot win the tourney still play big dollar bowl matchups.

At best you have a 15-game season for two teams. The rest of the teams garner their normal eleven games. Twenty-four to twenty-eight teams make post-season play beyond the 1-game NIT matchups. With this system the perrenial losers get to go home early, mediocre winners get to play in minor Bowl Games, and the "top dogs" get their day in the sun.

This year it would have looked like this:

First Round
1. MIAMI (11-0; BigEAST Champ) vs. 8. ILLINOIS (10-1; Big10 Champ)
2. NEBRASKA (11-1) vs. 7. TEXAS (10-2)
3. COLORADO (10-2; Big12 Champ) vs. 6. TENNESSEE (10-2)
4. OREGON (10-1; Pac10 Champ) vs. 5. FLORIDA (9-2)

Minor bowl qualifiers would have been:

Stanford (9-2), Maryland (10-1; ACC Champ), Oklahoma (9-2), Washington State (9-2), LSU (9-3; SEC Champ), South Carolina (8-3), Washington (8-3), Virginia Tech (8-3), Georgia (8-3), Michigan (8-3), Syracuse (9-3), BYU (12-1; MountainWest Champ), Fresno State (11-2), Ohio State (7-4), Lousville (10-2; ConfUSA Champ), Florida State (7-4), Toledo (10-2; MAC Champ), Hawaii (9-3), North Carolina State (7-4), Auburn (7-4), Arkansas (7-4), Marshall (10-2), Boston College (7-4), and Georgia Tech (7-5).

The losers (that have bowl games this year) in my system:

North Texas (5-6), Colorado State (6-5), East Carolina (6-5), Pittsburgh (6-5), Utah (7-4), USC (6-5), Iowa State (7-4), Alabama (6-5), Texas A&M (7-4), TCU (6-5), Concinnati (7-4), Texas Tech (7-4), Iowa (6-5), Kansas State (9-2), Louisiana Tech (7-4; WAC Champ), Clemson (6-5), Purdue (6-5), Michigan State (6-5), and North Carolina (7-5).

We have a really watered down 2002 Bowl Season because too many terrible teams made it. Its so bad that teams are being asked to PAY TO PLAY the bowl games! That means we have too many of them. By making them a little less common we make them more valuable, increasing the chance of revenue generation. By no means does any team deserve to play a bowl game if they lose money. That is just nonsense. ;P

Lets hear some other ideas........

 

[Ne0]

I would leave the current BCS alone, just make the BCS into a 8 way playoff !!

ROSE BOWL: Miami vs Nebraska (winner to face) ORANGE BOWL: Maryland vs Florida

(winner of Rose Bose vs winner of Orange Bowl. Winner of that game will face bottom.)

FIESTA BOWL: Colorado vs Oregon (winner to face) SUGAR BOWL: Illinois vs LSU

(winner of Fiesta Bowl vs winner of Sugar Bowl. Winner of that game will face top and thus have a TRUE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME)

8 teams all having a good chance of winning it all.

 

[MadRat]

Alot of CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS lose out if you make a simple "Elite 8". I guess if you didn't allow "Conference Tournament" teams to play the NIT games then you could justify 16-teams. That still makes a 16-game season for the champs. That would create alot of hardships for players as injuries would surely mount as games increase. If you had a 16-team field it looks like this:

1. MIAMI (11-0; BigEAST Champ) vs. 16. VIRGINIA TECH (8-3)
2. NEBRASKA (11-1) vs. 15. WASHINGTON (8-3)
3. COLORADO (10-2; Big12 Champ) vs. 14. SOUTH CAROLINA (8-3)
4. OREGON (10-1; Pac10 Champ) vs. 13. LSU (9-3; SEC Champ)
5. FLORIDA (9-2) vs. 12. WASHINGTON STATE (9-2)
6. TENNESSEE (10-2) vs. 11. OKLAHOMA (9-2)
7. TEXAS (10-2) vs. 10. MARYLAND (10-1; ACC Champ)
8. ILLINOIS (10-1; Big10 Champ) vs. 9. STANFORD (9-2)

What happens, even with a 16-team field, is that we leave out BYU (12-1; MountainWest Champ), Lousville (10-2; ConfUSA Champ),
and Toledo (10-2; MAC Champ). If we bump off the bottom three to make room for these conference winners then the field ends up:

1. MIAMI (11-0; BigEAST Champ) vs. 16. TOLEDO (10-2; MAC Champ)
2. NEBRASKA (11-1) vs. 15. LOUSVILLE (10-2; ConfUSA Champ)
3. COLORADO (10-2; Big12 Champ) vs. 14. BYU (12-1; MountainWest Champ)
4. OREGON (10-1; Pac10 Champ) vs. 13. LSU (9-3; SEC Champ)
5. FLORIDA (9-2) vs. 12. WASHINGTON STATE (9-2)
6. TENNESSEE (10-2) vs. 11. OKLAHOMA (9-2)
7. TEXAS (10-2) vs. 10. MARYLAND (10-1; ACC Champ)
8. ILLINOIS (10-1; Big10 Champ) vs. 9. STANFORD (9-2)

That would mean Virginia Tech (8-3), Washington (8-3), and South Carolina (8-3) end up staying home for the holidays...

 

[Pacfanweb]

It's very easy.

Get rid of the pre-season kickoff classic games, and start the regular season a week early.

Use the BCS standings just like they rank them now.

Have an 8 way playoff. 1 plays 8, and so on.
This playoff will take 2 weeks.....after which, the surviving 2 teams play in whatever BCS bowl has the championship game that year, and the rest go to their respective BCS bowls. Then the rest of the bowl-eligible teams get picked for the rest of the bowls.

This way, you make everyone happy.....the playoff supporters, the bowl supporters, and the fans. They CAN have playoffs, and still have bowls too. Think about it.....if they did it this way, we'd already know who would be playing in the Rose Bowl, just like we do now, and all the rest of the teams who think they got screwed would've had a shot at it.
You could even make it a 16 team playoff and only add 1 more week to the playoffs. I wouldn't recommend this, though. No season I can remember were there more than about 7-8 teams that would have a legitimate shot at #1 if given a chance. Usually there's only maybe 5.

 

[MadRat]

I am really beginning to like this idea of an NIT 11th game and Bowl Invitation 12th game. Some of the notable matchups would have been possible:

ROSE BOWL - Washington (8-3) vs. Michigan (8-3)
SUGAR BOWL - Marshall (10-2) vs. Fresno State (11-2)
ORANGE BOWL - Kansas State (9-2) vs. Hawaii (9-3)
CITRUS BOWL - Virginia Tech (8-3) vs. South Carolina (8-3)
COTTON BOWL - Georgia (8-3) vs. Syracuse (9-3)
FIESTA BOWL - Ohio State (7-4) vs. Florida State (7-4)
GATOR BOWL - Boston College (7-4) vs. Georgia Tech (7-5)
SUN BOWL - North Carolina State (7-4) vs. Auburn (7-4)
PEACH BOWL - Louisiana Tech (7-4; WAC Champ) vs. Iowa State (7-4)
OUTBACK BOWL - Arkansas (7-4) vs. Texas A&M (7-4)
ALAMO BOWL - Concinnati (7-4) vs. Texas Tech (7-4)
HOLIDAY BOWL - North Carolina (7-5) vs. Utah (7-4)

Gone would be such travesties as the SILICON CLASSIC BOWL, HUMANITARIAN BOWL, INSIGHT.COM BOWL, GALLERYFURNITURE.COM BOWL, SEATTLE BOWL, INDEPENDENCE BOWL, TANGERINE BOWL, LAS VEGAS BOWL, GMAC BOWL, and NEW ORLEANS BOWL! *LOUD APPLAUSE* And to think USC (6-5), Alabama (6-5), Iowa (6-5), TCU (6-5), Colorado State (6-5), East Carolina (6-5), Pittsburgh (6-5), Clemson (6-5), Purdue (6-5), Michigan State (6-5), and North Texas (5-6) all would stay home this season. Yes, we would all miss the NEW ORLEANS BOWL matching North Texas (5-6) vs. Colorado State (6-5), but somehow we'll manage.

The more I think about it the better this looked:

1. MIAMI (11-0; BigEAST Champ) vs. 16. TOLEDO (10-2; MAC Champ)
2. NEBRASKA (11-1) vs. 15. LOUSVILLE (10-2; ConfUSA Champ)
3. COLORADO (10-2; Big12 Champ) vs. 14. BYU (12-1; MountainWest Champ)
4. OREGON (10-1; Pac10 Champ) vs. 13. LSU (9-3; SEC Champ)
5. FLORIDA (9-2) vs. 12. WASHINGTON STATE (9-2)
6. TENNESSEE (10-2) vs. 11. OKLAHOMA (9-2)
7. TEXAS (10-2) vs. 10. MARYLAND (10-1; ACC Champ)
8. ILLINOIS (10-1; Big10 Champ) vs. 9. STANFORD (9-2)

Second Round would probably go:

1. MIAMI (now 12-0) vs. 8. ILLINOIS (now 11-1)
2. NEBRASKA (now 12-1) vs. 7. TEXAS (now 11-2)
3. COLORADO (now 11-2) vs. 6. TENNESESE (now 11-2)
4. OREGON (now 11-1) vs. 5. FLORIDA (now 10-2)

Third Round would probably go:

1. MIAMI (now 13-0) vs. 4. OREGON (now 12-1)
2. NEBRASKA (now 13-1) vs. 3. COLORADO (now 12-2)

The Championship would likely be:

1. MIAMI (now 14-0) vs. 2. NEBRASKA (now 14-1)

And of course the Champion would be:

1. NEBRASKA!

There you go, Oregon and Colorado both get the matchups they expected. The BCS power ratings still end up pitting the best against the best. The final ends up exactly the same, Nebraska as NATIONAL CHAMPION. hehe

 

[Ne0]

16 team playoff

 

[MadRat]

The old NEBRASKA state playoff system would also be a good way to discriminate the teams to go to the "Elite 8" or "Sweet 16". Does anyone remember DISTRICT COMPETITION in the state high school football playoffs? Nine games would be plenty for the season length in order to determine conference standings.

We have eleven conferences; six Major and five Minor conferences. They could establish guidelines for conferences to make the conferences into the equivalent of "districts". The top four teams of each district could battle for a garaunteed playoff position. Independent teams would have to battle to earn enough power points for an "independents district playoff".

Lets look at each conference this year and how this would have affected them, although for simplicity sake we'll keep all of the games in the formula:

Atlantic Coast: Maryland (10-1,7-1), Florida State (7-4,6-2), North Carolina (7-5,5-3), N.C. State (7-4,4-4), Georgia Tech (7-5,4-4), Clemson (6-5,4-4), Wake Forest (6-5,3-5), Virginia (5-7,3-5), Duke (0-11,0-8)
Playoff: Maryland vs. North Carolina, Florida State vs. N.C. State

Big TWELVE: (NORTH) Colorado (10-2,8-1), Nebraska (11-1, 7-1), Iowa State (7-4,4-4), Kansas State (6-5,3-5), Missourri (4-7,3-5), Kansas (3-8,1-7) (SOUTH) Texas (10-2,7-2), Oklahoma (10-2, 6-2), Texas A&M (7-4,4-4), Texas Tech (7-4,4-4), Oklahoma State (4-7,2-6), Baylor (3-8,0-8)
Playoff: (NORTH) Nebraska vs. Colorado, (SOUTH) Oklahoma vs. Texas

Big EAST: Miami (11-0,7-0), Syracuse (9-3,6-1), Virginia Tech (8-3,4-3), Boston College (7-4,4-3), Pittsburgh (6-5,4-3), Temple (4-7,2-5), West Virginia (3-8,1-6), Rutgers (2-9,0-7)
Playoff: Boston College vs. Miami, Virginia Tech vs. Syracuse

Big TEN: Illinois (10-1,7-1), Michigan (8-3,6-2), Ohio State (7-4,5-3), Iowa (6-5,4-4), Purdue (6-5,4-4), Indiana (5-6,4-4), Penn State (5-6,4-4), Michigan State (6-5,3-5), Wisconsin (5-7,3-5), Minnesota (4-7,2-6), Northwestern (4-7,2-6)
Playoff: Iowa vs. Illinois, Ohio State vs. Michigan

Conference USA: Lousville (10-2,6-1), Cincinnati (7-4, 5-2), UAB (6-5,5-2), East Carolina (6-5,5-2), Southern Miss (6-5,4-3), TCU (6-5,4-3), Memphis (5-6,3-4), Army (3-8,2-5), Tulane (3-9,1-6), Houston (0-11,0-6)
Playoff: East Carolina vs. Lousville, UAB vs. Concinnati

Mid-American: (EAST) Marshall (10-2,6-0), Bowling Green (8-3,4-2), Miami-Ohio (7-5,4-2), Kent State (6-5,3-3), Akron (4-7,3-3), Buffalo (3-8,1-5), Ohio (1-10,0-6) (WEST) Toledo (9-2,4-1), Northern Illinois (6-5,4-1), Ball State (5-6,4-1), Western Michigan (5-6,2-3), Central Michigan (3-8,1-4), Eastern Michigan (2-9,0-5)
Playoff: (EAST) Bowling Green vs. Marshall, (WEST) Northern Illinois vs. Toledo

Mountain West: BYU (12-1,7-0), Colorado State (6-5,5-2), Utah (7-4,4-3), New Mexico (6-5,4-3), AirForce (6-6,3-4), UNLV (4-7,3-4), San Diego State (3-8,2-5), Wyoming (2-9,0-7)
Playoff: New Mexico vs. BYU, Utah vs. Colorado State

PAC TEN: Oregon (10-1,7-1), Stanford (9-2,6-2), Washington State (9-2,6-2), Washington (8-3,6-2), USC (6-5,5-3), UCLA (7-4,4-4), Oregon State (5-6,3-5), Arizona (5-6,2-6), Arizona State (4-7,1-7), California (1-10,0-8)
Playoff: Washington vs. Oregon, Washington State vs. Stanford

South East: (EAST) Tennessee (10-2,7-2), Florida (9-2,6-2), Georgia (8-3,5-3), South Carolina (8-3,5-3), Kentucky (2-9,1-7), Vanderbilt (2-9,0-8), (WEST) LSU (9-3,6-3), Auburn (7-4,5-3), Arkansas (7-4,4-4), Mississippi (7-4,4-4), Alabama (6-5,4-4), Mississippi State (3-8,2-6)
Playoff: Florida vs. Tennessee, Auburn vs. LSU

Sun Belt: Middle Tennessee State (8-3,5-1), North Texas (5-6,5-1), New Mexico State (5-7,4-2), Lafayette (3-8,2-4), Arkansas State (2-9,2-4), Lousiana-Monroe (2-9,2-4), Idaho (1-10,1-5)
Playoff: Lafayette vs. Middle Tennessee State, New Mexico State vs. North Texas

Western Athletic: Lousiana Tech (7-4,7-1), Fresno State (11-2,6-2), Boise State (8-4,6-2), Hawaii (9-3,5-3), Rice (8-4,5-3), SMU (4-7,4-5), Nevada (3-8,3-5), San Jose State (3-9,3-5), UTEP (2-9,1-7), Tulsa (1-10,0-8)
Playoff: Hawaii vs. Lousiana Tech, Boise State vs. Fresno State

Independents: South Florida (8-3), Troy State (7-4), Central Florida (6-5), Notre Dame (5-6), Utah State (4-7), Connecticut (2-9), Navy (0-10)
Playoff: Notre Dame vs. South Florida, Central Florida vs. Troy State

Our district winners likely end up being: Maryland, Colorado, Miami, Illinois, Lousville, Toledo, BYU, Oregon, LSU, Middle Tennessee State, Lousiana Tech, and South Florida.

Allowing for power points to determine the other eight teams, we end up something like:

FIRST ROUND:
1 . MIAMI (13-0; BigEAST Champ) vs. 16 . LOUISIANA TECH (9-4; WAC Champ)
2 . OREGON (12-1; Pac10 Champ) vs. 15 . MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE (10-3; Sun Belt Champ)
3 . COLORADO (12-2; Big12 Champ) vs. 14 . SOUTH FLORIDA (10-3; Independent)
4 . ILLINOIS (12-1; Big10 Champ) vs. 13 . TOLEDO (10-2; MAC Champ)
5 . MARYLAND (12-1; ACC Champ) vs. 12 . LOUSVILLE (10-2; ConfUSA Champ)
6 . NEBRASKA (11-2) vs. 11 . BYU (12-1; MountainWest Champ)
7 . TENNESSEE (11-3) vs. 10 . STANFORD (10-3)
8 . TEXAS (11-3) vs. 9 . LSU (9-3; SEC Champ)

SECOND ROUND:
1 . MIAMI (14-0) vs. 8 . TEXAS (13-3)
2 . OREGON (13-1) vs. 7 . TENNESSEE (12-3)
3 . COLORADO (13-2) vs. 6 . NEBRASKA (12-2)
4 . ILLINOIS (13-1) vs. 5 . MARYLAND (13-1)

THIRD ROUND:
1 . MIAMI (15-0) vs. 4 . ILLINOIS (14-1)
2 . OREGON (14-1) vs. 3 . NEBRASKA (13-2) <----How'd they get there?

CHAMPIONSHIP:
1 . MIAMI (16-0) vs. 2 . NEBRASKA (14-2)

CHAMPION:
1 . NEBRASKA (15-2)

There you have it, on the third try Nebraska beats Colorado en route to the National Championship. Q: Why did Nebraska lose in the Big TWELVE districts, but win the championship? A: Because they'd of had to play in Boulder, CO twice in a row! Playing Colorado on a nuetral field would have more than put them over the top. Ever seen how poor the fans are in Boulder?