So how long until the playoff expands to 8?

[omniorange]

Yes, but that's the easier reaction to have. It was obvious that the lack of a 13th game did them in, so the first reaction is that maybe we need a 13th game. I think it's easier to say that than to immediately say we need to move to 8 teams. Attempts to put it on the committee for how they choose, rather than sound like sour grapes. Even his comment of "I wish we had known about how they would evaluate that extra game".

But after a few days to think about it, he had a slam dunk of getting 2 teams in, and if they don't change a thing in their league, they have a better chance of getting 2 teams in than any other league would. That last loss could knock the 2nd best team out of most leagues, assuming they get balance in their divisions.

Perhaps, but perhaps Swofford will change his mind since the ACC was the furthest away from having a possible 2 teams in an Elite 8 type format. In such a format would the Orange join the Peach, Fiesta, and Cotton as an event bowl?

I'm going by what has happened since the power conferences first felt true power from the time when the courts ruled that the NCAA could no longer control college football TV rights, to the Bowl Coalition that eventually became the BCS, to the new model now.

Lots of things have to happen or be resolved, imho, before there is any true meaningful talk of an 8 team playoff.

Cheers,
Neil

 

[Chip]

Perhaps, but perhaps Swofford will change his mind since the ACC was the furthest away from having a possible 2 teams in an Elite 8 type format. In such a format would the Orange join the Peach, Fiesta, and Cotton as an event bowl?

I'm going by what has happened since the power conferences first felt true power from the time when the courts ruled that the NCAA could no longer control college football TV rights, to the Bowl Coalition that eventually became the BCS, to the new model now.

Lots of things have to happen or be resolved, imho, before there is any true meaningful talk of an 8 team playoff.

Cheers,
Neil

Don't disagree. I'm looking at it from a pretty micro level.

A lot of logistics to overcome. But people start creating a punch list and going through them quickly once there's enough support for the idea.

I wonder what will be considered too many games for any "student athlete". Obviously, 15 is ok, because that's where we are. Is 16 the tipping point? 17?

 

[orange79]

Don't disagree. I'm looking at it from a pretty micro level.

A lot of logistics to overcome. But people start creating a punch list and going through them quickly once there's enough support for the idea.

I wonder what will be considered too many games for any "student athlete". Obviously, 15 is ok, because that's where we are. Is 16 the tipping point? 17?

Well, in the FCS championships, if a team has to play a first round game (i.e., no bye) and goes on to the championship game, they will have played 17 games.

Of course, academics are so much more rigorous at FBS schools than they are at FCS (and lower division) schools. FBS presidents will worry about missed class time.

 

[TheCusian]

Bama played WV as their only P5 while Mississippi St played 0. I doubt the SEC has to worry about OOC schedules as absolutely no one talked about any SEC schools OOC or the fact they played only 8 conference games. Is it possible the pundits and committee would parse Mississippi St's OOC schedule if they had only one loss? I don't know.

I did. But was shouted down.

They are the best. Always and forever. No matter who they play.

 

[SWC75]

And when #8 wins it all, don't you think that #9 and #10 might disagree with that?

I personally don't care. But there is just too much going against expanding the playoffs to 8, no matter how much we as fans may want it. Heck, from the moment the BCS was in full bloom, fans have been pining away for an 8 team playoff. I think it will be 4 for a while now.

Cheers,
Neil

There has never been in history any suggestion that a team ranked as low as 9th was a "national championship contender" whose abence from a national championship tournament invalidates it. There have been many suggestions that a 3rd ranked team had that status and even a 5th ranked team. I'm only advocating for 8 teams because I hate byes. History matters.

There was so much against expanding from 2 to 4 and now that we've done it's obvious that 4 is better than 2. It's also obvious that 4 isn't enough. we are talking about a 125 team division here. FCS has 124 teams and their tournament has 24 teams. Division II has 167 teams. Their tournament is 24 teams. Division III has 242 teams and a 32 team tournament. I actually think that's more teams than a national champion ship tournament probably needs. But the point is, they do it.

The players in those divisions, with rare exceptions, are not looking to get into the NFL. They are true student athletes who played football in high school and wanted to continue to do so while they worked toward a degree in college. FBS is full of players who are trying to get to the NFL and who were given scholarship to win football games for the college. But we have all these "reasons" thrown at us as to why FBS is unable to have a comprehensive national champion ship tournament as we do in every other sport and every other level of this one.

 

[cpatrocks]

how are they not?

baylor beat tcu, so thats the end of that.

then baylor lost to wv...which is a wash to vpi... yet played gary reasons u instead of another d1 program, like osu who then had to go out and beat wisconsin in a champ game.

game, set, match.

I think that OSU is the better team right now, but you can't just ignore the Va Tech loss. That was U-G-L-Y.

 

[SmilinBob]

8 gets in the conference champion. Now, the only problem with 8 is if 4 or more teams out of the P5's with 9-3 or 8-4 records win the CCG and then it becomes a debacle but the chances are slim for that to happen. Still, it leaves 3 spots and the teams fighting this out have themselves to blame for not winning that game and leaving it to the "committee". The winner of the conference (how ever the conference decides its winner) has an automatic invite and IS NOT UP TO THE COMMITTEE. They only pick the 3 extra and that is the pool they pick from...period. Not what they "think" and "assume" are the best teams. Let them backroom deal the 3 but the other 5 have earned it on the field of play where it should be decided. Seriously this committee...they had FSU out with one loss and if SU were ever to be fortunate enough they too would have been booted unless they too had one less loss than the brand name schools.

 

[sufandu]

how are they not?

baylor beat tcu, so thats the end of that.

then baylor lost to wv...which is a wash to vpi... yet played gary reasons u instead of another d1 program, like osu who then had to go out and beat wisconsin in a champ game.

game, set, match.

SOS's were all comparable. The only difference is when the games were, not how good the teams were (Actually that's not true, OSU lost to an inferior team). TCU and OSU each had one loss. TCU's was to a 1 loss top ten team on the road, OSU's was to a 6-6 unranked team at home. Game, set, match.

 

[cuseincincy]

Hopefully sooner than later but I'd bet at least 5 years. Would attendance at the Conf Champ games be affected? Sure, but not necessarily negatively. Wisconsin, Missouri, G Tech and Arizona all played games that would not affect where they played. Had any of them won they would not have been in the final 4. Now if you say win and you're in the 8 then I think those games mean much more. Many more teams in the discussion and at the end of the day you are guaranteed to have the top 3 teams in the playoffs even if they are the 3 at large teams. But lets look at reality of what we woudl be looking forward to:
Alabama vs. Mich St
Oregon vs. Miss St
Fla St vs. Baylor
OSU vs. TCU

The bottom 2 games would be particularly interesting. 4 teams is just not enough because no one can tell me definitively that our top 4 are better than the next 2.

 

[Ottoble]

I dont think it does much to the conf champ. GT still doesnt make it, OSU gets in bc they won - a loss knocks them out, wiscy doesnt get in, ariz doesnt get in.

Unless you make the CCG an Auto-bid

 

[CusefanATL]

Unless you make the CCG an Auto-bid

Yeah, which would probably make the conf champs even more popular.

 

[Ottoble]

After the CCG the first round of the 8 team playoff should be an extra home game for the higher seeds. No top school is going to turn down that revenue stream because you WILL sell those tickets.

EDIT: I'd suggest having those games the weekend 2 weeks after the CCGs for healing, also 2 weeks till the semifinal games on new years day, it's after finals at almost all schools. Most importantly it keeps the public's attention on college football across the holiday instead of the Bad bowl season lag, those bowl games can go on too but if there are important games it will help ratings for the whole system.