Bowl Championship Stupidity
http://www.atomicsportsmedia.com/articles/681/1/Bowl-Championship-Stupidity/Bowl-Championship-Stupidity.html
Jonathan Bentz
Jonathan Bentz graduated from West Virginia University on the four year plan. He was once a stringer and wire contributor for the AP at WVU football and basketball games; now he markets Nemacolin Woodlands Resort online. Some say Jay-Z bit his style, and Tom Cruise has recently been cast to star in his biopic, due next Christmas. He bleeds BLUE and GOLD, pays homage to Mike Gansey with every 3-ball he swishes, and dreams of being the first whiteboy to dunk a 720. Give him a shout at jonathan.bentz@atomicsportsmedia.com.
By Jonathan Bentz
Published on 01/10/2007
Boise State and Jonathan Bentz have the same wish: A college football playoff that would have given the undefeated Broncos a shot at the national title.
Boise State and Jonathan Bentz have the same wish: A college football playoff that would have given the undefeated Broncos a shot at the national title.
Bowl Championship Stupidity
The college football playoff argument should pick up a whole lot of ammunition this off-season thanks to what has transpired this bowl season.
There have been years where undefeated mid-major schools have been left out of the mix—Tulane in 1998, Marshall in 2000, Utah in 2002-- but in each of those seasons, the national champion (Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Ohio State respectively) also finished undefeated.
And let’s not forget the 2003 BCS fiasco, when Auburn--from the “big, tough, rough and tumble SEC”--got passed over for USC and Oklahoma.
(For the record, that SEC quote isn’t direct. I “kind of” made it up. Kind of.)
I would have argued that the mid-majors, or the odd team out, deserved a shot at the national title in each of those years, but because the season ended with an undefeated national champion the ends justified the means.
And from the inception of the BCS in 1998, the end has justified the means in every single season. Until now that is.
On Monday night, SEC champ Florida blew out the Ohio State Buckeyes to win the national title with a 13-1 record while the 13-0 Boise State Broncos remain no better than a WAC wannabe.
Oops.
In case you couldn’t tell by the headline or content of this column, I am a huge proponent of a playoff system for Division I-A college football. I even wrote a research paper in one of my college English classes on the subject.
In brief, here’s my theory on how a college football playoff should be structured:
The BCS powers-that-be argue that a playoff would extend the season too too long and take away the importance of regular season games. I have two words for them…
Shut. Up.
With 51 days between the end of an extended 12-game regular season and the national championship, the length of season excuse is an insult to the intelligence of everyone calling for a playoff. If the BCS suits were really worried about time away from class, every school would have two weeks between the end of the regular season and their bowl game. The college football season would end right before finals week and there would be a national champ crowned.
There have been years where undefeated mid-major schools have been left out of the mix—Tulane in 1998, Marshall in 2000, Utah in 2002-- but in each of those seasons, the national champion (Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Ohio State respectively) also finished undefeated.
And let’s not forget the 2003 BCS fiasco, when Auburn--from the “big, tough, rough and tumble SEC”--got passed over for USC and Oklahoma.
(For the record, that SEC quote isn’t direct. I “kind of” made it up. Kind of.)
I would have argued that the mid-majors, or the odd team out, deserved a shot at the national title in each of those years, but because the season ended with an undefeated national champion the ends justified the means.
And from the inception of the BCS in 1998, the end has justified the means in every single season. Until now that is.
On Monday night, SEC champ Florida blew out the Ohio State Buckeyes to win the national title with a 13-1 record while the 13-0 Boise State Broncos remain no better than a WAC wannabe.
Oops.
In case you couldn’t tell by the headline or content of this column, I am a huge proponent of a playoff system for Division I-A college football. I even wrote a research paper in one of my college English classes on the subject.
In brief, here’s my theory on how a college football playoff should be structured:
- 16 teams – the winner of each I-A conference (11) with five wild cards, or bubble spots
- Teams would be ranked for seeding using the BCS formula
- Eight bowl sites would be selected for the tournament, with the BCS bowls alternating as host for the championship game
The BCS powers-that-be argue that a playoff would extend the season too too long and take away the importance of regular season games. I have two words for them…
Shut. Up.
With 51 days between the end of an extended 12-game regular season and the national championship, the length of season excuse is an insult to the intelligence of everyone calling for a playoff. If the BCS suits were really worried about time away from class, every school would have two weeks between the end of the regular season and their bowl game. The college football season would end right before finals week and there would be a national champ crowned.
Bowl Championship Stupidity
Taking away the importance of regular season games is another 'concern' that doesn't hold water. Major programs in big-time conferences are always going to have important regular season games, and using the BCS formula to determine the at-large playoff bids ensures that independents and teams in lesser conferences will have to play competitive schedules, rather than the patsies they usually feast on. (This means you Notre Dame.)
A playoff would cheapen the regular season? Please. This year’s Ohio State-Michigan game was a classic that many viewed as the real national championship (until Monday night at least). Now imagine the intensity and importance of this season’s battle if it had been for an automatic berth, number one seed in the playoffs, a Big Ten championship, and an undefeated season all at once.
We all know that the biggest reason the BCS exists is money. As an outspoken fan of the greenback, part of me can’t argue with the BCS conferences for taking the loot and leaving the smaller fish out at sea. But compare the money the BCS gains from its TV contract against the windfall generated by college basketball’s March Madness.
Fox is paying roughly $80 million dollars a year for four of the BCS games (the Rose Bowl still gets its loot from ABC). Not bad, right?
Well CBS paid 1.7 billion dollars to air March Madness for four years… through 2002. I couldn’t find up to date numbers on how much CBS is paying currently for March Madness, but with a conservative estimate at inflation, I’m guessing it’s over two billion dollars for four or five years.
Last time I checked, $400 million is at least a little bit more than $80 million. I realize a 16-team, eight game tournament may pale in comparison to a 65-team, 33-game tournament when it comes to the number of TV ads a network can sell, but the quality of competition isn’t comparable. College football is a much stronger brand than college basketball, and a 16-team tournament would bring the best of the best in a head-to-head competition that has never happened before and would draw spectacular ratings.
From the outside looking in, the NCAA, BCS chairmen, and network television stand to gain a lot more from instituting a playoff than from shunning it.
I don’t care if they scoff at my idea, but something has to change. There is no reason an undefeated team should be left out of a chance at a championship because six conferences have the preordained right to some extra cash… especially when there is more money to be made with a college playoff.
If you really want the big bucks BCS, spot the ball for a I-A playoff.
A playoff would cheapen the regular season? Please. This year’s Ohio State-Michigan game was a classic that many viewed as the real national championship (until Monday night at least). Now imagine the intensity and importance of this season’s battle if it had been for an automatic berth, number one seed in the playoffs, a Big Ten championship, and an undefeated season all at once.
We all know that the biggest reason the BCS exists is money. As an outspoken fan of the greenback, part of me can’t argue with the BCS conferences for taking the loot and leaving the smaller fish out at sea. But compare the money the BCS gains from its TV contract against the windfall generated by college basketball’s March Madness.
Fox is paying roughly $80 million dollars a year for four of the BCS games (the Rose Bowl still gets its loot from ABC). Not bad, right?
Well CBS paid 1.7 billion dollars to air March Madness for four years… through 2002. I couldn’t find up to date numbers on how much CBS is paying currently for March Madness, but with a conservative estimate at inflation, I’m guessing it’s over two billion dollars for four or five years.
Last time I checked, $400 million is at least a little bit more than $80 million. I realize a 16-team, eight game tournament may pale in comparison to a 65-team, 33-game tournament when it comes to the number of TV ads a network can sell, but the quality of competition isn’t comparable. College football is a much stronger brand than college basketball, and a 16-team tournament would bring the best of the best in a head-to-head competition that has never happened before and would draw spectacular ratings.
From the outside looking in, the NCAA, BCS chairmen, and network television stand to gain a lot more from instituting a playoff than from shunning it.
I don’t care if they scoff at my idea, but something has to change. There is no reason an undefeated team should be left out of a chance at a championship because six conferences have the preordained right to some extra cash… especially when there is more money to be made with a college playoff.
If you really want the big bucks BCS, spot the ball for a I-A playoff.