FB: American Southwest Conference

[Toby Taff]

Truly Magnificent!  Now if OSU loses the title game BSU is the only undefeated team in the country.  That would be justice.

[Bill McCabe]

Why or why won't they have a playoff??

[Josh Bowerman]

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$, Bill.

Happy New Year, BTW, everybody. 

And just for the record, I'd classify Boise State's plays at the end of the game last night as "fluke" plays, too.  Not "fluke" in the sense that they were lucky--because they were well executed and well planned.  Rather, "fluke" in the sense that you just don't see that kind of stuff very often. 

Kinda like blocked punts....   

[crufootball]

I know that the BCS is flawed to say the least, but one point brought by someone on ESPN is that it has at least given teams like Boise State the chance to play in a big game. 20 years ago Oklahoma or most other big time programs would have never played a small program, they would have played another big program and all of the school like Boise would have been left little to nothing.

[Josh Bowerman]

crufootball, if you will remember, it took the threat of class action litigation a few years ago on the part of the non-BCS schools/conferences against the BCS for this to happen, though.

Make no mistake about it, the Big 10, Big 12, ACC, SEC, Big East and Pac 10 don't want to split that money ($14 million-plus per team, a portion of which gets distributed to all the schools in the participating institution's conference) amongst anyone other than themselves. 

Plus, they gain nothing by playing the small schools.  There are only two scenarios--A)  they destroy their smaller school opponent and get no respect because "they didn't play anybody" or B)  they get beaten by their smaller school opponent (e.g. Oklahoma) and get embarassed on national TV.

I personally don't have a problem with the bowl system--so long as folks don't try to annoint a "national champion" on January 2nd after the games have all been played.  If that's what everybody wants, then a playoff is the only way to get it done equitably.  And, I'd go further to suggest that the DIII model (i.e. conference champs get auto bids and QOWI determines at-large spots) might be the best way to go about setting up said tournament.

[Sender]

I agree with everything you say, but I do not want a playoff system.  It would be a few games to say the least, and Boise does not have the depth to compete.  Boise State is beat up.  I like saying what if.  Then you cost the smaller schools bowl money which keeps them going.  If USC played Boise next week in round 2, they would beat them by 45, and the romance would be gone.  That does not happen everyday, and it feels good say the small guy won.   That is why the system is good now.     

[Bill McCabe]

Josh, the Tulane president led that threat of litigation and they would have won their case.  I think that is why the BCS added the extra game.  Louisville won a BCS bowl last night, yet if they were still in C-USA, no BCS game.  I don't see how a playoff will hurt the BCS, they will just add more big payoff games.  The Independence Bowl, International Bowl, etc. are meaningless and won't be impacted by a playoff.  No one is going to those games or watching on TV.

Josh, I like your suggestion for a playoff.

[Josh Bowerman]

Sender, two words:  George Mason.   

[Bill McCabe]

Josh, great point.

[PA_wesleyfan]

 Didn't the anouncers say that Boise St. played 6 teams playing bowl games? That makes them formidable to me.

[dballa]

What would be wrong with having a 16 team playoff. 
The first round a home game to the top seed. 

The 2nd round going to the Orange, Sugar, Chickfila(Peach), and add the Cotton Bowl. 

Then the semi's going to the Rose and Fiesta Bowl.

Then the BCS Championship game.

They could do all that in the same time span from the conference championship games to New Years.

If they are worried about all the other bowl games then let the other teams who are bowl eligible play in the bowl other ones.  Basketball has an NIT tournament for those that don't make the big dance.  The secondary bowl games can be used the same way.

[Sender]

Basketball is different, no star stays in school past freshman year, srs. have a chance, they are men. Almost everybody goes to a bowl, you have to be pretty bad not to.  I saw some awful games this bowl season.  I saw Rice, and I know Mt. Union would give them a hellua game.  I am sure the NCAA has it figured out.  That would be a pain in the #$# to arrange that type of playoff.  It would end up just being big schools.  Do not flood the market.  Always have them wanting more. 


Also we do have the NIt of football all the 1-AA, d2, d3 schools on TV now.  If they did that, I promise we would be left off TV. 

[Sender]

Bill,
   The BSC playoff would be great, but it will only allow the rich schools to get richer and bigger, and I have enjoyed the little teams competing with the bigger schools the past few years.  You have that playoff, the big time talent will go to national telvised games to be seen and known and the little schools lose what leverage they have to get some soild talent.  It will be like in the 80's and 90's.  That is what I think, I maybe wrong though.  You are right the small games will be gone, and the big boys will not give up that cash or will not want to give an equal share.  They have there power lawyers also. 

[Ralph Turner]

Norm Hitzges first  proposed an 8-team and a few years later, a 16-team playoff system about 20 years ago.  He had the Champions of the major conferences, Big 10, Big 8, PAC-10, SEC, ACC, SWC, Lambert Trophy winner and one at-large, and then expanded it when D1 got bigger.

You can keep all of your conference championship games.

Take the Big East, ACC, C-USA, SEC, Mid-America, Big Ten, Big XII, Mountain West, WAC, Pac-10 and have room for 6 at large, determined by formula.

Line up the best 15 bowls.  Stratify them according to payout.  Use the other bowls as desired by the conferences for NIT-type/post-season stuff, and start the action!

[crufootball]

very good point sender about how a playoff system would most likely kill any chance of non D1 schools getting on TV. That alone is reason enough for me to not endorse a playoff system for D1.