NCAA president Mark Emmert wants an eight-team playoff

I'm in for 8 winner plays Bama

 

8.
Conference champs from P5, must be in top 15
Top ranked from G5, must be in top 20
Two at large

Conference championships must mean something...

 

I like this except...
1. Top 2 teams
2. Conference champs within the top 15 regardless of affiliation
3. Any team in top 10 whose conference isn't already represented
4. Best of the remaining to top her off

Don't see making different benchmarks for BCS/nonBCS schools. One should be sufficient. Then marry the committee and the BCS rankings.

 

Might as well ask the zebras to call holding on the gumps.

 

Any independent team not in a conference must be in the top 5 to get in as a conference champ, or top 10 to get in as at large.

 

I think it's a terrible idea. The fact is, all conferences from year to year are not created equal. Being a conference champion is nice, but it shouldn't automatically punch your ticket to the playoff. That works in the NFL, but one of the greatest things about college football is how much every single regular season game is of monumental importance. Some years, one loss could take you out of contention, which only ratchets up the drama of the game.

And sometimes, conference titles are won by teams that just don't deserve at shot at a national title. A few years ago when the Big East was still a BCS conference, Connecticut won the league with a 8-4 record. No four loss team deserves to play for a natty, period. If Florida had somehow knocked off Bama last week, there's no way I'd put that three loss mess of a team in the playoff over a more deserving 1 or 2 loss non-champion from the Big Ten or Pac 12 for instance. For these 3-4 loss teams who win a conference title game, a New Year's Day major bowl should be sufficient reward.

I think this is more about assuaging butthurt feelings with participation trophies for leagues that have been down lately. Four is a good number. I wouldn't change it. Only thing I will say is that if it did go to six or eight teams, I still wouldn't give auto-bids to Power 5 conference champs. Just too much disparity between conferences and too many possibly upsets by otherwise undeserving teams.

 

LSU finished the regular season 8-3 in 2001 before winning the SEC Championship. At that point they were one of the best 3 or 4 teams and would have desevered to play for all the marbles.

 

All you have to do in that case is make a clause that states any conference champ with more than 3 losses will not be eligible unless there are no at large teams viable with 3 losses or less.

In other words, Auburn is 10-2 and doesn't win the SEC, doesn't even play for the championship, they would vault an 8-4 Big 12 champ OU. There are people out there smarter than me that could figure this out.

 

Or set a cap on ranking...