NCAA Div-1 Playoffs

[mottlet]

This is not basketball. There are only so many games that can be played in a season.

I had a dog and his name was Bingo...

Too many folks crying for a playoff want something like exists in NCAA basketball. But football under that kind of system would be a nightmare. You'd have teams like Boise State comin' in without having beaten ANYBODY, while your traditional powerhouses come in all banged up from having played an SEC or Big 10 schedule.

I'm not gonna shed a single tear for smaller conference schools whining about not getting a shot. Play somebody. If you think your team is a legititmate national title contender, you better schedule ALL of your non-conference games against ranked teams to make up for playing in a patsy conference. I send all the congrats in the world to Boise State this year. They had a helluva season. But they don't deserve to even get a sniff of the title. Who have they beaten? Oklahoma. That's it. So did Oregon. Do the ducks deserve a shot at the title?

mottlet

[Lance Bass]

I never said this was basketball. In fact, I said I thought that your original post made the most sense. Your latter posts actually get more and more like basketball. But for instance, look at this year. Southern Cal, LSU (regardless of regular season), Ohio State, and Florida were clearly the best 4 teams in the country. All I'm asking is for a way to let those four teams have at it which you origianlly proposed. There would easily be a way to let LSU/Norte Dame and USC/Michigan play their bowl games and take the winners of those two games and set up a match with LSU/Ohio State and USC/Florida and then a NT game. With an 11 game schedule, this would be very feasable and would not change the structure too drastically. In fact, with an 11 game schedule, a team such as FLA would not play anymore games than they did this year with a 12 game schedule and a NT game. However, it pretty much worked out this year where there was really no question after FLA beat Ohio State who THE best team in the country this year was. But the year that Auburn went undefeated and didn't get a chance to play for a nat'l title was a travesty. And if that were to ever happen to my team, Ole Miss, I think I would beat somebody's ass up there at the NCAA headquarters; that's for sure.

[VICKSBURGBOB]

"look at this year. Southern Cal, LSU (regardless of regular season), Ohio State, and Florida were clearly the best 4 teams in the country" Lance Bass

I absolutely disagree with that statement on its face. Michigan only got beat by Ohio St. and USC how does LSU who got beat by at least one team not even under consideration for the National championship, qualify as one of the best teams. Same number of losses the difference is the quality of opponent and I think Michigan had one of the tougher schedules in all of D-1 football for the year as well. I am not a Michigan fan but you called that one absolutely wrong. I am not saying Michigan had a claim on the title either, just that they had more claim than LSU based on results. Also LSU was a good team, just not National championship caliber this year.

As far as a playoff I think Po Monkey's system is the fairest of the bunch for everyone. I do see the argument that if there is one conference that seems to have a strength advantage then teams get left out, like Notre Dame would under his system this year, but at least Po Monkey's system puts every team on a level playing field.

"You'd have teams like Boise State comin' in without having beaten ANYBODY, while your traditional powerhouses come in all banged up from having played an SEC or Big 10 schedule." mottlet

I hate to keep beating a dead horse but Boise St. did beat 4 of this year's bowl winners and a fifth team that only lost their bowl game by 1 point to a "traditional powerhouse". I don't see how you keep them out of the mix completely. Let them take the field and prove it there. They may only last one round or they may go all the way but until you play the game you DO NOT KNOW which is the better team. Evidence the national championship game from this year. I defy anyone to say they called that an SEC team would blowout Ohio St. this year to win it all.

Take the top teams from the 6 powerhouse conferences and add two at large teams. The way Po Monkey recommends there is no question as to who the best team in the country is at the end of the tournament no matter how you look at it. The question is if you are looking for the best football teams on the field to play one another or the ones who make the most money, (IE: can put the most fans in the seats). Which has more to do with championships now?

[Lance Bass]

Well, LSU's only losses were to FLA (beat Ohio State badly) and Auburn ( who beat FLA). Both of which were road games. Also LSU finished ahead of Michigan in the computerized and AP polls. Like I said, USC, LSU, Ohio State, and FLA were CLEARLY the best teams in the country in the latter portion of the year. If FLA had played LSU in Baton Rouge, it may have been a different story. LSU got punished by their tough road schedule, but we all saw what happens in a neutral or slightly favorable field such as the superdome. If we had treated these bowl games as a playoff, then Michigan got bumped out of the top four with their blowout loss to USC. So, again after the dust settled and the teams played, USC, LSU, Ohio State, and FLA were the best four teams. How that isn't clear is beyond my comprehension.

[mottlet]

I should have been clearer. Boise State can't win a title under the current format and under a playoff that resembles the NCAA b'ball tournament, they would have a strong advantage coming in because they have not been exposed to the wear and tear of a season in the SEC.

One team from each conference. Two at large bids. Just like Po Monk stated.

mottlet

[VICKSBURGBOB]

Again I am not saying LSU wasn't a good team and didn't have some good wins. But I don't think they were one of the 4 best. The ranking system is objective at best. I believe they could make a reasonable argument for the top 6 teams overall, which would still put them in a left out situation as far as Po Monkey's idea goes but they lost their slot when they lost to Florida. The great thing about his system is it brings some parody to this particular problem instead of allowing the SEC to run over the whole program just because of who they were in the past like the current system does. Just cause they beat a couple of SEC teams doesn't make them that good really. remember I am the SEC is over rated guy.

[GordonGekko]

Playoffs are not likely the answer for College football, maybe a plus one system....

Small schools, like Boise State, would have the hardest time with a true playoff system...because of the lack of depth. Boise State was pretty banged up after the Oklahoma game if I recall. Even though these teams would have an easier regular season schedule, they would lack backups with meaningful gametime experience. Further, honestly the talent difference is more apparent in the second and third string players than many of the starters.

When I was at Georgia Southern (a 1-AA school), our team did well in the playoffs because we were deeper than many other schools, many of our walk-ons recieved a good bit of playing time, and there wasn't too much drop off once one of us got hurt.... Smaller schools without the depth couldn't make that claim....