Lame Sports

Playoffs?! You Kiddin’ Me? Playoffs?!

By Jason Levy

Whenever I hear a BCS apologist defend the computer ranking system that determines the college football champions, they always say how the sport doesn’t need a postseason playoff tournament because the regular season serves as a playoff. If a team loses, they drop out of title contention, and when all is said and done two undefeated teams battle for the championship. But what happens in football when every team loses in this playoff format? How do we really know which the top two teams in the country are?

That’s the conundrum facing college football in 2007. There is only one undefeated team in all of Division 1-A, the University of Hawaii. Every national championship contender has suffered at least one loss. Most have lost twice. As it stands now, Missouri and West Virginia are ranked one and two respectively, and if each wins their final game they will meet in the BCS title game in New Orleans. Missouri faces off against Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game, the only team to beat them all season, while WVU plays arch-rival Pittsburgh in the Backyard Brawl. But no one can clearly say these are the only two teams that deserve a shot to win it all.

But as we’ve seen this season, winning is not guaranteed for a top ranked school. If either Mizzou or WVU fall, Ohio State will climb back into the national championship picture. If both lose, one-loss Kansas could be back in the fray, or maybe it’ll be a two-loss team like Georgia, Louisiana State, or Virginia Tech.

The 2007 NCAA football season is the best argument for a playoff system. There aren’t two teams that are clearly above all the others, and the only truly fair system would be to see which teams could survive a month’s worth of games against the other top football teams in the country. The BCS defenders say a playoff would take away from the traditions of the Bowl games, such as the Rose Bowl to name one. College presidents also don’t want to give up the money that make during the bowl games. But it’s time for the NCAA to start some new football traditions, and imagine how much money can be made if a team plays in three or four postseason games.

The solution is a 12-team playoff that would be chosen by a selection committee, made up of various university presidents and athletic directors, much like in college basketball. The winners of the six major conferences (Big 12, Big 10, Big East, Pac-10, ACC, and SEC) along with six wild card teams that could include independents (like Notre Dame) and unbeaten schools from smaller conferences (Boise State fit the bill last year, Hawaii has done so this year). Any team that can run the table, even in a small conference, deserves a shot to play against the best and win the whole thing. Seeding would be determined by the committee, who could use the AP Poll or BCS or whatever method they feel best places the teams. The top four seeds would get a bye.

Sure, there would be controversy if there are multiple teams that deserve that fourth bye slot, and the 13^th best team will be upset they aren’t included. These arguments are always present during the basketball selection process, but this is as fair as its going to get. And to keep with tradition, these games can be played in the famous bowls, including the aforementioned Rose Bowl, and the Orange, Sugar, and Fiesta bowls. Not only would this be fair, it would be wildly popular. NCAA basketball’s March Madness is one of the most hyped and followed sporting events in the country, and even non-gamblers put up a few bucks in their office pool. Imagine what it would be like with people filling out their football brackets. Here is what the 2008 January Jam Football Bracket would look like, based on which teams I think will win next week (their records based on those wins):

5. Virginia Tech (11-2)

12. Florida (9-3) 4. Louisiana State (11-2)

6. Kansas (11-1)

11. Hawaii (12-0) 3. Ohio State (11-1)

7. Georgia (10-2)

10. Arizona State (10-2) 2. West Virginia (11-1)

8. Southern California (10-2)

9. Oklahoma (10-3) 1. Missouri (12-1)

How can a month of football with those match-ups and potential scenarios not get a college football fan foaming at the mouth? And which ever team emerged victorious, we could all agree that they earned that championship.

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