Kinda OT: Axing Conference Championships for More Playoff Slots?

[TheCusian]

Fun ways to replace conference title games with Playoff games

This plus pods is the dream scenario

 

[orangepassion]

Makes a ton of sense

 

[HRE Otto IV]

Fun ways to replace conference title games with Playoff games

This plus pods is the dream scenario

My dream would be 7 conferences of 10 teams so you play everyone yearly. Novel I know.

Original Big 10
Original Pac 10
Original SEC
Original ACC plus former member South Carolina
Original Big 8 plus Utah and BYU
Big East current P5 schools plus Notre Dame and Penn State
SWC current P5 schools plus Memphis, USF, UCF, and old member Houston

I would keep the conference championship games and then have an 8 team playoff made up of the conference champs plus one at large.

Dream #2 would be a P5 of 16 teams so you play everyone once every three years.

B1G plus UConn and Army (FB only)
ACC plus ND and Navy (FB only)
SEC plus ECU and Cincy
P12 plus San Diego State, Boise, Fresno State, and Colorado State
B12 plus BYU, Memphis, UCF, USF, Houston, Air Force

Temple, UAB, and Southern Miss would be the only schools that consistently average 25k attendance per game to get left out.

 

[Scooch]

You don't need to get rid of conference championships to increase the playoff from 4 to 8 teams. There's no way conferences are giving them up anyway.

As it is, I look at conference championships as de facto playoff games, at least for one team involved (and sometimes both). As an example, this weekend: Utah needs to win to stay alive. The winner of Oklahoma/Baylor also stays alive. Both have a shot to enter the playoff if Clemson loses and/or Georgia loses. Most conference championship games have had some degree of meaning since the playoff started, it makes them fun and interesting.

Mind you, I'm an 8-team playoff advocate. And it'll happen eventually. Won't come at the expense of conference championship games, though.

 

[TheCusian]

You don't need to get rid of conference championships to increase the playoff from 4 to 8 teams. There's no way conferences are giving them up anyway.

As it is, I look at conference championships as de facto playoff games, at least for one team involved (and sometimes both). As an example, this weekend: Utah needs to win to stay alive. The winner of Oklahoma/Baylor also stays alive. Both have a shot to enter the playoff if Clemson loses and/or Georgia loses. Most conference championship games have had some degree of meaning since the playoff started, it makes them fun and interesting.

Mind you, I'm an 8-team playoff advocate. And it'll happen eventually. Won't come at the expense of conference championship games, though.

I don’t have a problem with the conference tournaments - but the case made out in the article was interesting. You could make the case a bunch of these games are foregone conclusions and a match up of teams from other conferences in a playoff would generate more interest.

If it were holding back an 8 team playoff, I’d gladly swap.

 

[SmilinBob]

What's kind of odd to me is when people don't want a playoff because it undermines the regular season but are ok with OU playing Baylor again after they just beat them. I agree Cusian...skip these foolish CCG games and move to a playoff with more schools. That said, force the conferences to play 10 conference games at the least.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Thought this was going to be about axe throwing.

 

[Alsacs]

Until these kids get paid legit money the playoff at 4 is fine.
Only expansion should be to 6.
15 games is enough for these kids and their bodies.

Conference title games should be the top 2 teams in each conference and not these imbalanced divisions.

Beyond team 6 nobody is left out that doesn’t deserve it.
If the expansion was the week after Army-Navy
Team 6 played at team 3
Team 5 played at team 4

Highest remaining team vs. 2 seed NY6 Bowl
Lowest remaining team vs. 1 seed NY6 Bowl.

Winners a week later that is enough.

 

[Hoo's That]

Lot$ of folk$, $uch a$ fan$ and the pre$$, $eem to be in$en$ate to the rea$on why the$e champion$hip game$ are $taged in the fir$t place.

The playoff will not be expanded until the P5 ADs can reconcile themselves to having at least one G5 team in the playoff every year and not just on rare occasions. Right now, they believe it is their fiduciary duty to keep the G5 out of the playoffs for as long as they can. Because of that, they can't and don't care about what the fans and media want to see. It's strictly about money. They want to keep as much of it as is possible in the P5 and not give any more than they already do to the G5, and expanding to 8 means the G5 will get more than they do now. The extra money for the additional games must include the lost revenue from the championship games as well as the extra money for the broadcast rights. I really don't think that ESPN/Fox is willing to pay out that much money.

 

[SU68]

Until these kids get paid legit money the playoff at 4 is fine.
Only expansion should be to 6.
15 games is enough for these kids and their bodies.

Conference title games should be the top 2 teams in each conference and not these imbalanced divisions.

Beyond team 6 nobody is left out that doesn’t deserve it.
If the expansion was the week after Army-Navy
Team 6 played at team 3
Team 5 played at team 4

Highest remaining team vs. 2 seed NY6 Bowl
Lowest remaining team vs. 1 seed NY6 Bowl.

Winners a week later that is enough.

I like 6 teams, but: P5 champions and the next best team, regardless of conference. No guaranteed entry for a G6 team.

 

[Alsacs]

If this year was a 6 team playoff.
LSU and Ohio State would be playing for byes.
Clemson would be playing for 3 seed and bye if either lost.
Georgia, Oklahoma, Utah, Wisconsin would be playing to get into the playoffs.

Right now its UGA is playing to get in and if they lose then Utah vs. Oklahoma at 4.

 

[KaiserUEO]

Until these kids get paid legit money the playoff at 4 is fine.
Only expansion should be to 6.
15 games is enough for these kids and their bodies.

Conference title games should be the top 2 teams in each conference and not these imbalanced divisions.

Beyond team 6 nobody is left out that doesn’t deserve it.
If the expansion was the week after Army-Navy
Team 6 played at team 3
Team 5 played at team 4

Highest remaining team vs. 2 seed NY6 Bowl
Lowest remaining team vs. 1 seed NY6 Bowl.

Winners a week later that is enough.

aka: The Kaiser Plan.

 

[TheCusian]

I think it has to be 8 or 4. Byes suck, IMO

 

[KaiserUEO]

I think it has to be 8 or 4. Byes suck, IMO

It’s the NFL Playoff system for the last 30 years.

2 byes, bottom 4 play.

I think it works my friend...

 

[TheCusian]

It’s the NFL Playoff system for the last 30 years.

2 byes, bottom 4 play.

I think it works my friend...

just because it’s the way it’s been, doesn’t mean it’s optimal.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

just because it’s the way it’s been, doesn’t mean it’s optimal.

Why wouldn’t it be optimal to reward the vest teams with extra rest, prep time, and avoiding injury?

 

[TheCusian]

Why wouldn’t it be optimal to reward the vest teams with extra rest, prep time, and avoiding injury?

If they are the best teams why do we want to give them more of an advantage? Especially in college - where the top teams are even less prone to upsets due to greater disparity in talent?

 

[shantydaze]

I think an eight team playoff makes more sense than a six team playoff. The P5 conference champions get an autobid. This year Wisconsin is likely going to be hurt by playing in the B1G Championship. They have no shot at a playoff spot if they win and probably will be leapfrogged by Penn State for the Rose Bowl when they lose.

If we went to six instead of eight, I would be okay with it being the P5 conference champions and the highest ranked G5 conference champion. Would this mean a worthy (and by "worthy" I mean a second SEC team) gets left out? Maybe, but I highly doubt television sets are going to be shut off throughout the south because either LSU or Georgia was left out of the playoff.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

If they are the best teams why do we want to give them more of an advantage? Especially in college - where the top teams are even less prone to upsets due to greater disparity in talent?

Because you want the best teams to win the title not a fluke team. An 8 seed winning renders the regular season meaningless. The more at large spots there are the worse it is for the sport.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

I think an eight team playoff makes more sense than a six team playoff. The P5 conference champions get an autobid. This year Wisconsin is likely going to be hurt by playing in the B1G Championship. They have no shot at a playoff spot if they win and probably will be leapfrogged by Penn State for the Rose Bowl when they lose.

If we went to six instead of eight, I would be okay with it being the P5 conference champions and the highest ranked G5 conference champion. Would this mean a worthy (and by "worthy" I mean a second SEC team) gets left out? Maybe, but I highly doubt television sets are going to be shut off throughout the south because either LSU or Georgia was left out of the playoff.

I can live with 8 if it has only 2 at large bids. But why do we want the best G5 in automatically? I rather have it like the old BCS where a conference champ (whether P5 or G5) gets in if Top 15.

This would force the conferences to scrap divisions entirely and just take the two best teams for the conference championship game. But even then 6 is better than 8. Just look at this year:

G5 no likely Top 15
B1G, Big 12, SEC, P12 auto bids
ACC if Clemson wins auto but if UVA wins none
So should UVA win you will have FOUR at large bids in an 8 team playoff. That is dumb. With 6 teams you reduce it to two which is still too much IMO but not horrible.

 

[Hoo's That]

I can live with 8 if it has only 2 at large bids. But why do we want the best G5 in automatically? I rather have it like the old BCS where a conference champ (whether P5 or G5) gets in if Top 15.

This would force the conferences to scrap divisions entirely and just take the two best teams for the conference championship game. But even then 6 is better than 8. Just look at this year:

G5 no likely Top 15
B1G, Big 12, SEC, P12 auto bids
ACC if Clemson wins auto but if UVA wins none
So should UVA win you will have FOUR at large bids in an 8 team playoff. That is dumb. With 6 teams you reduce it to two which is still too much IMO but not horrible.

Picking the two best teams would require a D-1 rule change because right now 12-team conferences have to have divisions in order to have a championship game. The ACC wanted to do exactly what you're advocating by adopting the 3-5-5 schedule, but was shot down by the B1G and SEC (both of whom would benefit the most from doing it). Plus, somebody has to replace the revenue the conferences will lose by ending championship games.

 

[shantydaze]

Because you want the best teams to win the title not a fluke team. An 8 seed winning renders the regular season meaningless. The more at large spots there are the worse it is for the sport.

Why even play a six-team playoff then? Right now, OSU and LSU are the two best teams in the country. Just have them play ala the BCS. I have never understood the love of Cinderellas in March, but disdain for them in December.

As for rendering the regular season meaningless, that shipped sailed when a non-conference champion made the playoff. I would be fine with a 10 team playoff with all FBS conference champions (sorry ND and other independents, the conferences own the system). At that point, the conference regular season would be huge and, because an early NC loss would not automatically disqualify a team from the playoffs, we could see some great games the first couple of weeks of the season.

While the seeding would still be a beauty contest, there would at least be an objective criteria on how to make in as opposed to the changing theme used by the Committee each year to justify their four picks.

 

[shantydaze]

I can live with 8 if it has only 2 at large bids. But why do we want the best G5 in automatically? I rather have it like the old BCS where a conference champ (whether P5 or G5) gets in if Top 15.

This would force the conferences to scrap divisions entirely and just take the two best teams for the conference championship game. But even then 6 is better than 8. Just look at this year:

G5 no likely Top 15
B1G, Big 12, SEC, P12 auto bids
ACC if Clemson wins auto but if UVA wins none
So should UVA win you will have FOUR at large bids in an 8 team playoff. That is dumb. With 6 teams you reduce it to two which is still too much IMO but not horrible.

It would simply be throwing the G5 a bone to shut them and their political supporters up.

I have no problem with a team like Virginia getting an autobid if it upsets Clemson. Otherwise, why are those kids even playing in the game with such a limited upside. It makes the game meaningful and if the "wrong" team makes it because of what happens on the field, I am fine with that. Honestly, as fans of a non-helmet school, we should want an objective path to the playoffs.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

Why even play a six-team playoff then? Right now, OSU and LSU are the two best teams in the country. Just have them play ala the BCS. I have never understood the love of Cinderellas in March, but disdain for them in December.

As for rendering the regular season meaningless, that shipped sailed when a non-conference champion made the playoff. I would be fine with a 10 team playoff with all FBS conference champions (sorry ND and other independents, the conferences own the system). At that point, the conference regular season would be huge and, because an early NC loss would not automatically disqualify a team from the playoffs, we could see some great games the first couple of weeks of the season.

While the seeding would still be a beauty contest, there would at least be an objective criteria on how to make in as opposed to the changing theme used by the Committee each year to justify their four picks.

I would be for that if there were a P5 and a G2. CUSA, MAC, and the Sun Belt are not playing the same sport. Those schools should all be relegated to FCS. Have an 8 team made up of the 7 conference champs plus one at large.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

It would simply be throwing the G5 a bone to shut them and their political supporters up.

I have no problem with a team like Virginia getting an autobid if it upsets Clemson. Otherwise, why are those kids even playing in the game with such a limited upside. It makes the game meaningful and if the "wrong" team makes it because of what happens on the field, I am fine with that. Honestly, as fans of a non-helmet school, we should want an objective path to the playoffs.

See I rather see most of the G5 go away. FBS should have a minimum average attendance requirement of 25k. That would easily knock out 40 schools. That leaves the P5 plus remnants of AAC and MWC. Bam 7 teams for the playoff.