The Pecan Park Eagle

It’s time to talk again about the need for a playoff system in the determination of the champion for Division i NCAA college football. What we have now rewards the elite few schools and conferences who own and control “BCS” status and still falls short of even giving their own limited group of schools much chance of reaching the lone “title game.” Losing a single game almost guarantees that an elite school has blown its chances of ending the season as one of the top two rated schools that get to play in the “BCS College Football Title Game.”

How fair is that? Is it any wonder that all these conference alignments keep shifting? To win the BCS title, a school has to belong to the exclusive club that controls everything and aims it toward the benefit of the most privileged few. As long as that format remains the controlling scenario, there will be only one post-season game annually that means anything to the biggest viewing public. All the others will continue to play out for the alumni of the of the specific schools playing there and the communities of interest behind each game’s sponsorship. Does anyone out there beyond the vested interests mentioned here really recall that Central Florida defeated Georgia, 10-6, in last season’s AutoZone Liberty Bowl?

Yeah, I know. It’s all about money and the bowls protecting their ancient meaningless system, but we don’t have to watch. And I don’t think many of us any longer do. Last year, the BCS Championship Game is the only bowl game I watched, but I’d be hard-pressed this moment to even tell you where it was played, the score, or even who opposed victorious Auburn for the honors. Truth to tell, I think I’ve become more of a multi-tasking TV grazer than a dedicated viewer as I’ve grown older. The TV receiver I watch sits side-by-side with my Internet. And it’s a rare moment when I’m not also writing or researching something as a small part of my consciousness floats across the surface of whatever’s being shown on one of the gazillion new channels we now have coming into our home these days.

Today’s one-game BCS system assures us that conference stability will remain fragile as a few privileged and politically powerful schools have to continually defend against rising schools who beat on the door, demanding attention – and trying to win a battle in the board room that cannot even be played on the gridiron. A playoff system takes the pressure off a school’s conference membership and gives far more schools a chance to win it all through direct competition on the playing fields that now exist as meaningless buck-driven bowl games.

What follows is a summary of the 34 bowl games played last year. With no additions, there’s room now for a BCS-rankings-driven 16, 8, or 4 team playoff system for determining the Division I champion. I prefer the 16-team format, with no concern that the extra games are going to deprive our student athletes of any scholarship attainments they might otherwise achieve. The more qualified schools that have a chance to win, the better, as far as I’m concerned.

Of course, if you prefer leaving the situation to its current elitist mess, just buy into the party line of the big bowls and biggest schools – and leave the bloody dish alone. These folks will tell you: If the small schools can only play well, but do not “travel well.” i.e., If they don’t bring a lot of fans with money to burn into Bowl Game towns, they don’t deserve to be playing for a national championship, no matter how good their kids may be on the field.

We know that money is the big issue here that stands in the way of change, but what do we do about it? If nothing, that’s fine. Just move the game reports to either the “society” or “business” sections of the newspapers and stop reporting college football as a sport. Otherwise, find a way to do the playoffs in a way that rewards the bowls with a greater share of the TV money on those years they draw clubs that don’t “travel well.”  There needs to be a way to formulate a solution that overcomes the resistance to change. Otherwise, you have to play these stupid means-nothing games out in the face of millions of people like me. – And I just don’t make time for meaningless TV games – even when I’m multi-tasking.

What do you guys think? As fans, do we speak up for a better playoff formula? Or do we just leave the sleeping dog of college football alone?