Four Best Teams

[PlutoDroid]

Don't totally disagree, but getting hot in college is a little different than the NFL.

A month less of regular season games they routinely drop games all the time.

So how about this.

Let's say Florida is undefeated going into the FSU game. A 9-3 Auburn has won the West.

Think we might be tempted to rest starters? Think we might view the likelihood of us getting in, even with a loss, pretty high if 8 teams get in?

NFL teams do it all the time in week 17.

Other teams would do it too.


I think it creates the potential for a slippery slope where teams don't worry about winning every game. That's one of the things that makes college so interesting.

One loss and all of a sudden you don't know what the future holds for you.

Watch teams in bad conferences start having 3-4 losses, banking on that auto qualifier.


Just saying.

Well if they do that and have to face off against that team in the playoffs they still can beat them full strength. Every week you have the chance to win and improve your playoff positioning.

The team that had the best regular season would still make the playoff with one slip. Alabama did last year, they got in the playoff despite losing to Auburn because they had a better regular season. Their reward was getting in over Auburn because of their better regula season despite losing by two touchdowns in the Iron Bowl. Auburn had to keep winning and they didn't therefore their regular season losses were held against the, Alabama got in over two conference champions as well.

If you are the best you shouldn't fear beating a team who got in because of a wildcard. You still have to beat them, thus validating your claim as being the best. Otherwise it's an empty title.

 

[fsu939913]

Except sad thinks a conference winner should automatically be allowed in, even if they suck.

The perfect system is 6 teams. 5 conference champs and 1 "other". Top 2 get a bye, that way every game still matters. Conference champions should hold a huge weight, OOC wins should be a huge weight determining the seeding. Bama should be out of top 2, they played 1 tough team all yr.

 

[ocalaman]

I still think it will eventually go to 8 teams with all 5 P5 champs getting in, plus the top ranked non-P5 team and the highest ranked others. Seed 'em 1-8 and play it out. You could even have the top 4 seeds host the 1st round and then use the same 4 bowls we have now for the semis and finals.

 

[Dannygator1989]

The perfect system is 6 teams. 5 conference champs and 1 "other". Top 2 get a bye, that way every game still matters. Conference champions should hold a huge weight, OOC wins should be a huge weight determining the seeding. Bama should be out of top 2, they played 1 tough team all yr.

I 100% agree.

It makes the "winning your conference should get you in no matter what" folks to shut up, and it keeps it from getting too silly.


But of course, they'll then bitch that it's "unfair" that the top two teams get a BYE.

Boo boo.

Should have done better.

 

[LizardGrad89]

We can't have a playoff in the current setup. Not at 4, 8, 16. Not at all.

Because there is no system.

Look at it now, with 4. One of the P5 isn't getting in, sometimes more than 1.

But what happens if you go to 8 with 5 auto bids for conf champs and 3 wild cards?

That's when #2 Clemson plays #8 Ga Tech and oopsie, Ga Tech wins and now both get in.

There will be a LOT of "oopsies" if we make it division champs and wild cards.

The only way to have a true playoff is to close I-A and realign the conferences. Either 4 conferences of 16 teams with a championship game or 8 conferences of 8-10 teams. Yes, some teams get dropped back to 1-AA. Probably best for them, then they can work with a more realistic budget.

 

[Dannygator1989]

We can't have a playoff in the current setup. Not at 4, 8, 16. Not at all.

Because there is no system.

Look at it now, with 4. One of the P5 isn't getting in, sometimes more than 1.

But what happens if you go to 8 with 5 auto bids for conf champs and 3 wild cards?

That's when #2 Clemson plays #8 Ga Tech and oopsie, Ga Tech wins and now both get in.

There will be a LOT of "oopsies" if we make it division champs and wild cards.

The only way to have a true playoff is to close I-A and realign the conferences. Either 4 conferences of 16 teams with a championship game or 8 conferences of 8-10 teams. Yes, some teams get dropped back to 1-AA. Probably best for them, then they can work with a more realistic budget.

I like that better than 16...but I also loathe 16.

People need to get over themselves.
No system makes everybody happy.

 

[fsu939913]

16 makes zero sense. 8 i think is max but i dont even like the 8. I like the realigning of confernece to 4 major conferences. Then having those 4 and 2 wild cards. This gives teams like UCF a chance to make the wildcard slot.

 

[PlutoDroid]

16 makes zero sense. 8 i think is max but i dont even like the 8. I like the realigning of confernece to 4 major conferences. Then having those 4 and 2 wild cards. This gives teams like UCF a chance to make the wildcard slot.

I doubt the commissioners of their respected P5 would ever do this.

Now if Texas goes independent or joins another league (doubtful as they run the Big 12), or Oklahoma leaves and the Big 12 crumbles .The desired leftovers get could absorbed and we may see 4 super conferences.

 

[keyzer soze]

Lots of good points being made here. But I think maybe we are missing the big picture.

How does any playoff, 4-8-16 whatever, IMPROVE the sport?

If we take all the Conference champs then surely some 3/4 loss teams will end up getting in. Even if there was a conference realignment, it’s an inevitability.

If you have at large bids then there will be 3 sec teams getting in every year over 1 loss teams from weaker leagues or even worse not getting in behind a 1 loss team from a weaker league.

Like I said before the old way was better or at least more fun. In the old format everybody was in the playoff. Every game counted. Nobody was excluded. If Kansas goes 13-0 then they have a shot. If UCF wants in then formulate a plan and make the investment in facilities and jump into a major conference like TCU, Utah or Louisville have in the last few years.

Otherwise abandon conference championships and bowl games and invite 64 teams. Then we can have a bunch of games nobody cares about. Like oozie said, a watered down nfl. And we can all watch cfb wither and die for the sake of “making it fair and including everybody”.

Bottom line for me is this. None of these playoff scenarios make the game better. They just create another thing for the people that get left out to whine and bitch about, all the while increasing the chances that the best team doesn’t win it all.

And the complaining is worse now, because there is new credibility attached to a championship. They used to be “mythical” so if you got left out it didn’t hurt as much. So a bunch of reporters didn’t vote my team winner of the cfb beauty contest. So what? Now the have-nots are actual have-nots because the playoffs are sanctioned and not just opinion.

 

[oozie7]

The only thing you get with playoffs is exactly what you get in every sport that has one...mediocrity. The threat of being left out is what drives excellence. There's a reason none of those other sports give a shit about losing games in the regular season.

I'd be fine with keeping 4 if we go to four 16-team conferences, 8 in each division. We can have a western region, a southwest region, a northeast/atlantic region, and a southeast region. 8 division games, 2 crossover games. There's your 8-team playoff in effect. Winner of the four conferences go to the playoffs. Done and done. No more bitching from anybody about not being included.

 

[keyzer soze]

The only thing you get with playoffs is exactly what you get in every sport that has one...mediocrity. The threat of being left out is what drives excellence. There's a reason none of those other sports give a shit about losing games in the regular season.

I'd be fine with keeping 4 if we go to four 16-team conferences, 8 in each division. We can have a western region, a southwest region, a northeast/atlantic region, and a southeast region. 8 division games, 2 crossover games. There's your 8-team playoff in effect. Winner of the four conferences go to the playoffs. Done and done. No more bitching from anybody about not being included.

I’ve said the same thing about 4 16 team conferences. But you can bet your last thin dime it won’t solve the problem.

You will end up with 2 of those conferences being mediocre and one, the southeastern one, being 10 teams deep. College football will literally die out West with that system.

So come playoff time the 3 of the 4 best teams in the country will be in one conference. And 2 of them will sit at home.

Still won’t solve the problem. People will still bitch and the sport will be ruined.