This year has been chock full of BCS controversy. Between OU edging out Texas for the Big 12 championship spot, to earlier in the season when it was likely Penn State would get in with an easy schedule and people would watch another blowout of a Big 10 team.
I have heard bloggers and sites calling for a 16 team playoff system and others calling for a 8 team playoff. The sixteen team playoff scenario seems way too unlikely to me. For starters, you would have to play four post season games instead of 3. You would definitely have to subtract a game or two from the regular season to decrease injuries and players playing way past January.
Another issues is you would be putting teams like Ball State, Georgia Tech and TCU in there, who would generally get blown out every year by the USC's and Florida like teams of the NCAA. Yes there are those who would say "there could be Cinderella teams" the "underdogs" like in NCAA basketball. Yes it is somewhat possible, but the recruiting gaps in football or a lot more severe than in basketball. Teams like George Mason and Davidson others can get three or four good players, and that's all it takes to have a good team. Whereas football, three or four doesn't cut it, when you have eleven guys on offense and defense. So you need a lot of talent on both sides. Therefore it is harder to compete against the big dogs when you can only steal a couple good recruits from them every year.
On the other hand you have the 8 game playoff system. While there won't be any at large bids or major Cinderella stories, it will be the best teams competing. Who wouldn't want to see first round games of Utah versus Texas, or USC vs Florida. They would all get great ratings and be fun to watch. By the time you got to the end of the tournament there would be no doubt that the best team won. If Alabama for example, beat Penn State, Florida, and then Oklahoma in the championship, would you really question their title? I doubt it.
Whereas with the current system in 2004 Auburn went perfect and was left out of the title game. We could still use the BCS ranking system for seeding, there is no problem with that. We all know that any system is fairer then the one we have currently. Just ask Texas right now? Should they really have to play Ohio State as a consolation prize?
I just have serious doubt that the bowl committee will change anything because of the amount of money these bowls are making. They would probably keep all the other small bowls and add the playoffs on top of it, if they do every change it.
Clarke Baldwin is a journalist who has worked for Dallas Morning News and other publications. You can find his site at International News Blog and a related story in Sports.
