Why College Football Should Keep the BCS

by Ryan Koski

Although the BCS System has its flaws, I think the NCAA should keep it for now. In order to switch to a playoff system, only allow around sixteen teams could get into the playoffs anyway, since you can’t force teams to win seven or eight playoff games to be crowned champion.

Despite it's flaws, the BCS should stay but with perhaps the addition of a plus one game.

If you think about it, how many one-loss teams would be out of the sweet sixteen. It would be impossible to determine who should get in and who shouldn’t.

Are you just going to base it on strength of schedule? If so, then what happens if a two-loss team is ranked ahead of a smaller undefeated school? How fair will it be towards the smaller schools that didn’t have the chance to play tougher opponents?

Creating a playoff system will just create the same controversy that the BCS already has. The difference is that the NCAA gives universities a major payday for reaching a bowl game. With 32 total bowl games, it means that 64 teams will get that payday, along with giving half of those teams a chance to end their season on a winning note. With a playoff system, only one team would get to win their last game.

With the current BCS, every single game is also that much more important. It’s almost as if entire season is a playoff, considering that any game in the middle of the season could determine which teams face off in the championship game.

Imagine if the NFL had the BCS system for the Nov. 4th game between the Patriots and the Colts. Not only would that game determined who went on to play in the super bowl, but it basically would have been the super bowl.

I can understand creating a one game playoff after the all the bowl games are played but creating an entire playoff system is a bad idea.

ChristofMVP

753 days ago

Score 1

I disagree. Give me a 16 team playoff.

Eliminate the 12th regular season game. Eliminate the conference championship game. Include the Bowl game in the playoff.

Hence, only 2 teams will be an extra game from what they would be playing currently.

This would work.

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RawbeezeitzMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 2

Your logic is faulty. You're arguing that no system could properly identify the top 16 teams (out of 120, or 13.333%) in the nation, so it follows that selecting the top 2 (1.667%) in the nation would would be even more difficult. There's a big difference between a team getting screwed out of the top 16 as opposed to a team getting screwed out of the top 2. Also, with a playoff, teams that get eliminated can then play in the bowl games.

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DonatevoMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 1

All those other bowl games wouldn't be available anymore, there wouldn't be enough TV airtime to go around.

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RawbeezeitzMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 1

There's plenty of TV time. A 16 team playoff would add 15 games that would get phenomenally high ratings. The money from that TV contract could be dispersed throughout D-IA, or to all the teams that made a bowl game. How much does the Motor City Bowl pull in? How much would a playoff game between Oklahoma and Oregon pull in?

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False ProphetAll-Star

753 days ago

Score 1

yeah, who would you rather watch:

USC vs Cal again

or

Purdue vs. Florida St.

I'd be willing to bet that everyone with half a brain would rather watch the first matchup

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Koski02Red-Shirting

753 days ago

Score 1

I do realize that the BCS has its flaws and support having a one-game playoff but I dont think that having a 16 team playoff is the right way to go

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Davis21wylieMVP

753 days ago

Score 1

A College Football Final Four, anyone?

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CoreyisarealboyMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 4

I argued this once too. But with the parity in college football these days, I'm starting to think the only way to truly determine the best is a playoff.

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Steel TownDraft Pick

753 days ago

Score 1

"Imagine if the NFL had the BSC system for the Nov. 4th game between the Patriots and the Colts. Not only would that game determined who went on to play in the super bowl, but it basically would have been the super bowl." Exactly why the BCS sucks.

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CoreyisarealboyMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 1

And actually, I don't need to look any further than the first week the standings were released. South Florida is a unanimous No. 1 in the computer rankings but Ohio State is tied for fifth. The Bulls have now lost three straight. Not a good sign if you're a BCS advocate.

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DonatevoMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 1

That's why we play the whole season before picking the final 4 participants. South Florida didn't deserve it.

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RawbeezeitzMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 3

Another thing that bugs me is this whole "every game is a playoff game" thing. LSU lost a game and they're #2. Kansas hasn't lost a game and they're 4th. Hawaii also hasn't lost, and they're 16th. Georgia, Virginia Tech, and Michigan have all lost twice and their 10th, 11th, and 12th, respectively. Every game isn't a playoff game. If you're LSU, you're in a double elimination. If you're Boston College, it's single elimination. If you're Hawaii, you have to hope that everybody else loses two more games. It's bullshit.

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CoreyisarealboyMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 0

Hawaii is an unfortunate story for sure, and I'm glad you bring them up. The Preseason AP Poll had them ranked 23rd and now, after being undefeated for the entire season, are only ranked 14th. That's only one spot per win, and is big time bullshit.

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DonatevoMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score -2

Going to a playoff is a bad idea for the entire NCAA. At least this way, it gets down to four teams, who get a shot at an extra game. Going to a playoff system would knock all teams out of a 12th game, and the revenues that go with it, as well as knock 48 teams from getting a bowl game. The current system is as close to perfect as we need to get.

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False ProphetAll-Star

753 days ago

Score 3

this system is close to perfect? Did you watch College football last year? The sole undefeated team wasn't even given a shot at winning the national championship.

Are you actually saying that it's cool when the national championship is decided in november?

Are you actually saying that the Colleges racking in money is more important than determining a champion?

Are you saying that a bunch of writers and some random formulas are a good way to determine who is the best team?

So let me get this straight:

According to you, we should let teams with at least one loss play for the National championship instead of an undefeated team. We should make sure the fat cats in their university offices get paid before we make sure we have a fiar system.

I'm about to go crazy, because this is just rediculous

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Anonymous Fanatic #1

753 days ago

Score 0

It's a tough subject to argue but the playoff system wold do the same thing in keeping teams worthy of contending from participating in the playoffs. It's not as if a playoff system is without it's flaws either.

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RawbeezeitzMajor Leaguer

753 days ago

Score 0

A 17th ranked team with 2 losses bitching about being excluded is a lot different than a 3rd ranked team with 0 losses complaining.

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FrugolfVarsity Captain

753 days ago

Score 0

A plus one is a good idea.It would in time become as big or bigger than the Super bowl.Have the BCS pit their # 1 against # 4 and # 2 against # 3.The 2 winners play the College Championship game.It's not perfect but it would give the best 4 BCS teams a chance to win it all.

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