Ok, you know I love me some BCS. I love the fact that every game matters from game 1 to the last game of the season. The only answer I keep coming back to is to keep the bowl structure the same as it is and just pit, based on BCS standings, #1 vs #4 and #2 vs #3. The plus one bowl would serve as the NC game. Who would not want to see these matchups on Jan 2? #1 Florida vs. #4USC #3 Texas vs. #2 Oklahoma The season isn't elongated, there is no disruption in Spring semester starting. It's no different that what we have in place already. I understand the calls for an 8 team playoff. But if you can't get into the top 4 of the BCS at season's end, then you shouldn't complain. But for someone like Texas to be snubbed this season, as it appears will happen, that just isn't fair. Texas will be sitting home January 8th watching Oklahoma, a team that they beat by 10 points on a neutral field, and having only lost to Texas Tech on the last play of the ballgame on the road, play Florida for the NC. There is too much injustice in that scenario. I for one am pulling for OU to win out and cause a firestorm regarding the current BCS process for crowning a champion.
Well lets go one step further... if your conference doesn't have a conference championship then you don't get BCS bowl berths. Let the major conference champions play each other in the playoffs, and then crown the best of the best.
That's not a bad 2nd option. The 6 conference champs plus the 2 highest non-BCS schools or 1 highest non-BCS school plus the the highest ranked BCS non-champion. 8 teams, requires one extra week of football. Still feasible.
I always dreamed that we could push college football's start back a little bit and then have an 8-team playoff that would coincide with the Superbowl. Can you imagine how great a Saturday national championship game, then a Sunday Superbowl would be? It sounds semi-lame, but that would almost be good for the economy imo, because of the high volume of people who would be going out and buying things for parties, etc...
There are so many ways this could be done, but I am in favor of the 8-team playoff. 1.) All six major conferences have to do the same thing- have a conf championship game. 2.) Take those 6 conference champions + the next 2 highest ranked teams. (If you lose your conf champ game, sorry, no playoff for you!) 3.) The first round games can be played at the 4 highest seeded teams place. 4.) Then use the BCS bowl sites for semifinal round and the championship games. :crystal::geaux::crystal::geaux::crystal:
There is no way there would be a conference championship if there is a playoff system. That would put the season into the next semester and college presidents will not allow that. If there is going to be a playoff system, the conference championships will have to go. But the idea of an 8-team playoff system built around several bowls including the Rose, Orange, Cotton and Sugar Bowls would be a good idea. The Superbowl would be the NCG.
BB, not getting the part about pushing the season too far back. The conference championships would always occur the first Saturday in December, as they do now for those that have one. I say you use the 4 BCS bowls for the semi's. Then use 2 neutral sites that rotate on an annual basis for the semi-finals. Then use one of the BCS bowls for the NC, as we do with the plus 1 now. That pushes the season out to Jan. 15th/16th for only 2 teams in the entire nation. That's not asking very much.
1) I can't see any of the current BCS conferences agreeing to any playoff that doesn't include their champion. 2) The main thing I like about a playoff of conference champions and "top others" is we wouldn't have to wait 6 to 7 weeks to see two teams play. So far, five of the ten BCS Championship games have been complete blowouts. I doubt if we would see that happening, if teams had continous play and coaches/players only had two weeks (or less) to get ready. 3) The argument that it would mess up the other bowls is silly. We're talking 8 teams, a home game for four teams in the first round, then two bowls, then one. There's almost 30 bowls that have nothing to do with the BCS. Every other football playoff system we have from high school through the pros starts with home games for the higher ranked teams. Keeping this feature would have to be part of the equation, considering the cost/time of traveling on short notice to the different sites. 4) I also believe all the BCS conferences should have 12 teams/two divisions, even if it causes realignment of current leagues. Only their champion should get into the playoff, no second teams from the same conference. The other two slots would go to the highest ranked conference winner of the other leagues. This is the only way to make league play and the conference championship still meaningful. For example, the SEC championship really means nothing if both teams playing know they're in the playoff win or lose.... or, say, Oklahoma is ranked # 1 and loses their conference championship to an 18th ranked Missouri... they're done... and that's the way it should be. The season has to mean something, the conference championship has to mean even more, and the playoffs more yet. that's my 2 cents... or was that 4 cents?
Best thing I can think of is this: Keep the regualr season the way it, conference championships and bowl games. Then after the bowl games are played take the top 8 teams from the final BCS poll. Pit those 8 teams against each other in a 4 QF games, then those winners against each other in 2 SF games and then those winners against each other in the National Championship game.
