8-team playoff

[Cap'n Geech]

FWIW an 8-team playoff with 5 P5 champs, 1 G5 champ, and 2 at-large bids would have looked like this:

1-Alabama
2-Clemson
3-Notre Dame
4-Oklahoma
5-Georgia
6-Ohio State
7-UCF
8--Washington


Alabama vs. Washington
-
Oklahoma vs. Georgia
--
Notre Dame vs. Ohio State
-
Clemson vs. UCF

 

[HamSammich]

Would have been an awesome set up this year.

 

[57stratdawg]

I just feel like we’re moving the decision point. 5 years into the 8 team playoffs, it’ll be “we need Sweet 16”.

I’m fine with the idea that Washington and Ohio State didn’t have a good enough season to play for a national title.

 

[patdog]

I don’t think so. This addresses a real need. If you win your P5 conference title, who are you or anyone else to say your not good enough to get a chance? Once you get to 8 teams, there’s no need to go any further.

 

[was21]

8 is inevitable....pressure will build in near future...anything beyond that will probably have to wait a long time

 

[Hankp22]

Power 5 argument

I am tired of hearing the Power 5 championship argument. If a P5 championship is any part of the criteria, then why mathematically only have 4 spots. Point being, it's only part of the criteria when convenient. The design of the 4 team playoff is flawed for a P5 champion argument. You have two P5s at home this year.

The OP in this thread solves that. It looks good to me. I would change it to 3 at large teams though. It would make for an awesome set of games around Dec20.

 

[Cap'n Geech]

4 to 8 is fundamentally different than 8 to 16. 4 teams was never going to be enough when you have 5 power conferences.

And Ohio State would have been favored over Notre Dame.

 

[maroonmania]

I don’t think so. This addresses a real need. If you win your P5 conference title, who are you or anyone else to say your not good enough to get a chance? Once you get to 8 teams, there’s no need to go any further.

Agree. 8 is needed to cover the conference champs and allow the top G5 in. Still leaves the next 2 highest rated teams. I don't really see any need to go to 16 after that.

 

[Cap'n Geech]

Having 2 SEC teams in last year really cranked up the expansion talk. I would argue this year is as much if not more of a case for expansion. Just like last year 2 P5 conferences were left out. Plus what is pretty clearly the 3rd best team was left out.

 

[GTAdawg]

Yep, where does it end? It is what it is and everyone knows the scheme going into it. You can’t keep asking these athletes to keep playing more games for free....especially the elite ones that are on the top teams.

 

[jlove20]

IMO- a 16 team playoff where all conference champions are included would be extremely ideal. In that scenario, you will eventually eliminate all undefeated teams crowning one champion. Tired of teams not given the dignity of walking off the field a loser. Kids should not have to wonder whether their athletics department has scheduled correctly for contracts that are built typically before the current roster entered college.

 

[Cap'n Geech]

"Where does it end?" How is that a justification for 4 teams? Do you have an actual argument for why 4 is better than 8?

And if you're worried about 2 out of 130 FBS teams playing the potential 16th game, you can shorten the regular season back to 11 games.

 

[Go Budaw]

Yep, where does it end? It is what it is and everyone knows the scheme going into it. You can’t keep asking these athletes to keep playing more games for free....especially the elite ones that are on the top teams.

It ends when the money stops flowing in more and more for high quality football in December / January.

Nobody is asking kids to “play more games for free”. I say 16 team playoff....cut 2 regular season games against the nonconference patsies to make room for it. Everyone plays a 10 game schedule with either 8 conference games + one Power 5 nonconference team + one other nonconference team or 9 conference games + one Power 5 or non-Power 5 school. All games hosted on campus until the Final 4. That’s still 50% less teams on a percentage basis that make the field than what make the NCAA basketball tournament. 16 of 130+ teams vs. 68 of 330+ basketball teams.

This solves the problem of both the playoff and the fact that 25% of any Power 5 football team’s schedule is pointless with all these nonconference gimme games.

 

[bulldogbaja]

A lot of people thought it should be 8 all along. Not sure who exactly made the decision.

 

[coachnorm]

College Football is supposed to be a 12 game elimination to get 4 spots. The selection committee should put in parameters to force elimination down to 4 spots. If the big boys want to compete for the 4 spots, they should be forbidden playing FCS teams that soften the schedule and fabricate automatic wins. The selection committee should disqualify any team that does not go on the road 6 times and face opponent crowds that get loud when they are on offense. The selection committee should forbid get healthy game 11 automatic win slots that impede the elimination process. Do this and let the process of evolution run its course. Any questions, check out programs like Stanford, UCLA, and Notre Dame schedules? They are true week one thru twelve schedules and not just tough schedule blocks with cupcakes mixed in.

 

[shotgunDawg]

8 team playoff is perfect. 5 conference champs and 3 at larges.

I don't like the idea of guaranteeing the G5 a spot. Then UCF, Memphis, Houston, and Boise have an easier path to the playoff than SEC schools and that isn't right. I have no issue with a G5 getting in but they need to rank in the top 8.

 

[HumpDawgy]

If they went to a 16, they would probably drop schedules back to 11 game due to the number of games. 4 extra games is a lot for the 2 teams in the final, especially with the conference championship game. 8 team playoff should do the trick.

 

[patdog]

College Football is supposed to be a 12 game elimination to get 4 spots.

In the 150 year history of college football, this has been the case for exactly 4 years. So, not sure where you're getting that the current format is what college football is "supposed" to be.

 

[coachnorm]

In the 150 year history of college football, this has been the case for exactly 4 years. So, not sure where you're getting that the current format is what college football is "supposed" to be.

Hi Patdog, I agree with you. College football has had a culture of if you loose you may not get a second shot thus a 12 game elimination. A modification was enacted a few years ago for elimination of all but four teams but there is still the same general mindset of elimination with little chance of redemption in 12 games? I believe that college football is not ready to become a mini NFL format for a playoff so I used the word "supposed" because the 12 game elimination is still a benchmark and not an NFL elimination method.

 

[Duncflydawg]

There is a definite need for 8 team playoffs. I don’t see a need for anymore than that.

 

[Bulldog Bruce]

Let the schools only schedule 10 games and then have 2 flex games 1 home and 1 away that is setup by the CFP committee. Then you can keep it as the 4 team playoff. The non P5 teams can then get a fair chance by the committee having a UCF type team play Georgia, OSU or Bama. This way no extra games and questions can be answered at the end. Also each teams fan base doesn't lose a game in this way and gets a better game than some of the ones they get now.