College Football Bowl Discussion

[Guest]

How does Boise State "represent more of an outlier than the norm"? They've gone undefeated in the regular season three out of the last four years, have never had a particularly hard schedule and this is the highest they've been ranked going into the bowls. There's very little difference in the 2006, 2008 and 2009 versions of Boise State. They didn't blow anything because they went undefeated each year and couldn't have done any more than they did, especially since it's widely known that BCS teams avoid scheduling them.

 

Which is my whole point. If you had an eight team playoff last year, there would be just as much controversy as there is this year because you're either holding out No. 3 Texas or an undefeated Boise State team that couldn't have done any more than they did.

 

You can make the same case in 2004 and 2006. In 2006, you had No. 3 Michigan (11-1), No. 4 LSU (10-2), No. 6 Wisconsin (11-1) and No. 9 Boise (12-0) up for at-large bids. In 2004 you have No. 4 Texas (10-1), No. 5 Cal (10-1) and No. 6 Utah (11-0) for two spots. Somebody would have been ticked off in each of these years with an eight-team playoff.

 

Are you defending the current system, or are you arguing against an 8 team playoff?

 

Also, as a nitpick, Wisconsin was #7 and Boise State was #8 in 2006. Auburn (10-2) was #9.

 

Sorry on the rankings. For this year and last year, ESPN's final regular season rankings had the BCS on the top left and I assumed it was the same for 2006 but I guess it was the AP's.

 

I'm arguing that there would be just as much controversy in an eight-team playoff as there is with the current system. People seem to think that an eight-team system - which would have to give auto-bids to the conference winners because there's a better chance of me becoming president of the U.S. than there is of a straight top-8 go - would eliminate the controversy when it wouldn't. In each of 2004, 2006 and 2008, you're either keeping out a top-5 team (this goes up to top-3 in 2008) or an undefeated team.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

I'd love to see a playoff for college football, but the more I look at it, I don't think any controversy will be eliminated unless the field is at least 12 teams. 12 teams would allow for conference champions in addition to providing enough at large to cover top five teams and unbeatens, I think. On the other hand, I don't think there's that much traction for the idea to have a field that large.

[shnsajax]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4725887

[Jon]

NY Times[/url]"]The N.C.A.A. is conducting a wide-ranging investigation into the University of Tennessee’s football recruiting practices, according to interviews with several prospects, their family members and high school administrators. A significant part of the investigation is focused on the use of recruiting hostesses who have become folk heroes on Tennessee Internet message boards for their ability to help lure top recruits.

 

N.C.A.A. officials have visited four prospects and are scheduled to visit two others this week in an investigation covering at least three states. The inquiry is unusual in its scope and its timing. It is rare that the N.C.A.A. looks at this wide a swath of one university’s recruits before the players have signed with a program in February.

..........

Interviews with multiple recruits and their family members revealed that the N.C.A.A. has strong interest in Tennessee’s use of recruiting hostesses, students who are part of a formal group at the university that hosts all manner of prospective students at campus visits, including athletes. It is not clear whether the university sent the hostesses to visit the football players.

...........

Two of Lattimore’s teammates, Brandon Willis and Corey Miller, have orally committed to Tennessee. Lattimore described the hostesses as “real pretty, real nice and just real cool.” He said he thought they had “a lot” of influence in Miller’s and Willis’s commitments to Tennessee.

............

“You don’t want to go to a college where they ain’t pretty,” Lattimore said.

I don't think that's a quote I want to have printed in the NY Times.

[Keener98]

Kiffin is well on his way to having Tenn on probation.

[SouthSideRyan]

NY Times[/url]"]The N.C.A.A. is conducting a wide-ranging investigation into the University of Tennessee’s football recruiting practices, according to interviews with several prospects, their family members and high school administrators. A significant part of the investigation is focused on the use of recruiting hostesses who have become folk heroes on Tennessee Internet message boards for their ability to help lure top recruits.

 

N.C.A.A. officials have visited four prospects and are scheduled to visit two others this week in an investigation covering at least three states. The inquiry is unusual in its scope and its timing. It is rare that the N.C.A.A. looks at this wide a swath of one university’s recruits before the players have signed with a program in February.

..........

Interviews with multiple recruits and their family members revealed that the N.C.A.A. has strong interest in Tennessee’s use of recruiting hostesses, students who are part of a formal group at the university that hosts all manner of prospective students at campus visits, including athletes. It is not clear whether the university sent the hostesses to visit the football players.

...........

Two of Lattimore’s teammates, Brandon Willis and Corey Miller, have orally committed to Tennessee. Lattimore described the hostesses as “real pretty, real nice and just real cool.” He said he thought they had “a lot” of influence in Miller’s and Willis’s commitments to Tennessee.

............

“You don’t want to go to a college where they ain’t pretty,” Lattimore said.

I don't think that's a quote I want to have printed in the NY Times.

 

Sex

[Jon]

Should've just gone with the obligatory "volunteer" joke.

[jersey cubs fan]

Hostesses were easily the best part of the recruiting process.

[Guest]

Kiffin is well on his way to having Tenn on probation.

I'm surprisied it's taking him this long.

[shnsajax]

Kiffin is well on his way to having Tenn on probation.

I'm surprisied it's taking him this long.

 

no kidding, he is hurting the SEC average.

[Rusch33]

I'd love to see a playoff for college football, but the more I look at it, I don't think any controversy will be eliminated unless the field is at least 12 teams. 12 teams would allow for conference champions in addition to providing enough at large to cover top five teams and unbeatens, I think. On the other hand, I don't think there's that much traction for the idea to have a field that large.

 

I say 16.

 

Give you all of the conference champs plus a couple more at-larges.

[Soul]

“You don’t want to go to a college where they ain’t pretty,” Lattimore said.

 

'Tis true, no?

 

All we need to do is figure out how to get Kiffin to send a few hostesses our way for kind posts on the message board. I see no problem here.

[dew1679666265]

Kiffin is well on his way to having Tenn on probation.

I'm surprisied it's taking him this long.

 

It's odd that they're investigating before the recruits sign (or even commit in some cases), but yeah, not particularly good.

[Cubswin11]

It's about damn time politicians tackle issues that are truly important to American's everywhere!

 

A House subcommittee approved legislation Wednesday aimed at forcing college football to switch to a playoff system to determine its national champion,

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4727426

[chuckywang]

It's about damn time politicians tackle issues that are truly important to American's everywhere!

 

A House subcommittee approved legislation Wednesday aimed at forcing college football to switch to a playoff system to determine its national champion,

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4727426

 

I love that only one representative voted "no" on the bill, and even then he doesn't like the BCS.

[CubbieBum]

I'm pretty sure a lot of the controversy would be eliminated with an 8 team playoff, at least the kind that currently exists. It would be like the NCAA Tournament. There is controversy over who gets in but no one argues with who the champ is. There would obviously be more controversy with only 8 teams getting in compared to 64 in basketball but the people who would complain about not getting in claiming they would have won the championship wouldn't have much support. This is mainly due to the fact that a team not in the top 8 would likely have 2 losses already. Most years the winner in all likelihood would be amongst the top 5 and only have 1 loss or less and thus any team with two losses that didn't get in wouldn't really have much to stand on.

[shnsajax]

It's about damn time politicians tackle issues that are truly important to American's everywhere!

 

A House subcommittee approved legislation Wednesday aimed at forcing college football to switch to a playoff system to determine its national champion,

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4727426

 

I am a little curious as to how congress even has the right to do this, I'm guessing in part because a majority of universities are supported by state funding?

[Soul]

It's about damn time politicians tackle issues that are truly important to American's everywhere!

 

A House subcommittee approved legislation Wednesday aimed at forcing college football to switch to a playoff system to determine its national champion,

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4727426

 

I am a little curious as to how congress even has the right to do this, I'm guessing in part because a majority of universities are supported by state funding?

 

Interstate trade, I'm thinking. It's the catch-all that gives the Feds the right to be involved in most anything. Plus, throw something like this back in their faces and watch how they crawl into every orifice of your life.

[Derwood]

NCAA is also exempt from anti-trust regulations, which is something the fed can dangle over their heads if they want things to change

[ISUCubsFan]

It's about damn time politicians tackle issues that are truly important to American's everywhere!

 

A House subcommittee approved legislation Wednesday aimed at forcing college football to switch to a playoff system to determine its national champion,

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4727426

I'm not sure I agree with Congress getting involved in this, but either way this just looks like a semantics argument with the BCS. It only prohibits promoting or merchandising a game as a "championship" game unless it's the last game of a playoff. It seems like it would be pretty easy to go back to the old system where they called it the Rose/Orange/Fiesta/Sugar Bowl, promote it as "1 vs 2" or something, and carry on as usual.

[dew1679666265]

NCAA is also exempt from anti-trust regulations, which is something the fed can dangle over their heads if they want things to change

 

Yeah, anytime Congress wants to show their power over NCAA/NFL/MLB/NBA, they dangle that anti-trust exemption over their head.

[SouthSideRyan]

I'm pretty sure a lot of the controversy would be eliminated with an 8 team playoff, at least the kind that currently exists. It would be like the NCAA Tournament. There is controversy over who gets in but no one argues with who the champ is. There would obviously be more controversy with only 8 teams getting in compared to 64 in basketball but the people who would complain about not getting in claiming they would have won the championship wouldn't have much support. This is mainly due to the fact that a team not in the top 8 would likely have 2 losses already. Most years the winner in all likelihood would be amongst the top 5 and only have 1 loss or less and thus any team with two losses that didn't get in wouldn't really have much to stand on.

 

I'm pretty sure I'd be pretty pissed if I was Bama this year and saw Georgia Tech win it all because they are in a shitty conference.

[SpongeWorthy]

I'm pretty sure a lot of the controversy would be eliminated with an 8 team playoff, at least the kind that currently exists. It would be like the NCAA Tournament. There is controversy over who gets in but no one argues with who the champ is. There would obviously be more controversy with only 8 teams getting in compared to 64 in basketball but the people who would complain about not getting in claiming they would have won the championship wouldn't have much support. This is mainly due to the fact that a team not in the top 8 would likely have 2 losses already. Most years the winner in all likelihood would be amongst the top 5 and only have 1 loss or less and thus any team with two losses that didn't get in wouldn't really have much to stand on.

 

I'm pretty sure I'd be pretty pissed if I was Bama this year and saw Georgia Tech win it all because they are in a [expletive] conference.

 

What does Georgia Tech being in the ACC have to do with winning a hypothetical 8 team playoff?

 

I'm sure Alabama would be pissed if any team other than itself won...just like the other 6 teams that didn't win it all in an 8 team playoff.

[Guest]

I'm pretty sure a lot of the controversy would be eliminated with an 8 team playoff, at least the kind that currently exists. It would be like the NCAA Tournament. There is controversy over who gets in but no one argues with who the champ is. There would obviously be more controversy with only 8 teams getting in compared to 64 in basketball but the people who would complain about not getting in claiming they would have won the championship wouldn't have much support. This is mainly due to the fact that a team not in the top 8 would likely have 2 losses already. Most years the winner in all likelihood would be amongst the top 5 and only have 1 loss or less and thus any team with two losses that didn't get in wouldn't really have much to stand on.

 

I'll go ahead and post a condensed version of what I did earlier:

 

2009: One of No. 4 TCU (12-0), No. 5 Florida (12-1), No. 6 Boise St. (13-0) gets left out.

2008: Two of No. 3 Texas (11-1), No. 6 Utah (12-0), No. 7 Texas Tech (11-1), No. 9 Boise State (12-0) are left out while No. 12 Cincinnati (11-2) and No. 19 Virginia Tech (9-4) get in.

2006: Two of No. 3 Michigan (11-1), No. 4 LSU (10-2), No. 7 Wisconsin (11-1) and No. 8 Boise (12-0) are left out while No. 10 Oklahoma and No. 14 Wake Forest get in.

2004: One of No. 4 Texas (10-1), No. 5 Cal (10-1) and No. 6 Utah (11-0) are left out while No. 13 Michigan and No. 21 Pittsburgh get in.

 

You're telling me there wouldn't be controversy with those teams getting left out? This isn't the NCAA Tournament where a No. 11/12 seed (which is usually where the teams who narrowly miss out would get seeded) has no chance of winning the tournament.

 

But all of the teams in the "Could get left out" category are good enough that if they got hot for a couple weeks could win three straight and the national title.

[dew1679666265]

I'll go ahead and post a condensed version of what I did earlier:

 

2009: One of No. 4 TCU (12-0), No. 5 Florida (12-1), No. 6 Boise St. (13-0) gets left out.

2008: Two of No. 3 Texas (11-1), No. 6 Utah (12-0), No. 7 Texas Tech (11-1), No. 9 Boise State (12-0) are left out while No. 12 Cincinnati (11-2) and No. 19 Virginia Tech (9-4) get in.

2006: Two of No. 3 Michigan (11-1), No. 4 LSU (10-2), No. 7 Wisconsin (11-1) and No. 8 Boise (12-0) are left out while No. 10 Oklahoma and No. 14 Wake Forest get in.

2004: One of No. 4 Texas (10-1), No. 5 Cal (10-1) and No. 6 Utah (11-0) are left out while No. 13 Michigan and No. 21 Pittsburgh get in.

 

You're telling me there wouldn't be controversy with those teams getting left out? This isn't the NCAA Tournament where a No. 11/12 seed (which is usually where the teams who narrowly miss out would get seeded) has no chance of winning the tournament.

 

But all of the teams in the "Could get left out" category are good enough that if they got hot for a couple weeks could win three straight and the national title.

 

The simple answer to that is to go to a 16-team format. I don't know if that's the right answer, but the format should be the question, not whether or not to go to a playoff system at all.