National Championship Game

[Maized & Confused]

20 minutes ago, commando said:

SEC fans want to see a 4 team all SEC playoff.   they are the best afterall

SEC fans and ESECPN want to see a 4 team all SEC playoff.   they are the best afterall

 

Agreed, but fixed it for you

[BigRedBuster]

3 hours ago, Nebfanatic said:

Lots of threads on the topic at the moment lol i do agree though 8 teams with the 5 CC, 1 G5 (if certain criteria are met, a 3 loss G5 team likely wouldn't cut it) and 2 wildcard spots. It should have been done this way from the beginning. Just turn the Rose, Sugar, Orange and Fiesta bowls into quarterfinal games. Take 1 noncon game off the schedule and there you have it.

 

My only problem with this is getting rid of one non-con.  That would mean only having two non-cons per year.  Right now, I mentioned in some thread on this board, that the Big Ten only played 12 Power 5 non-con games and the SEC only played 8 or 9.  That's a very small sample size when people are then trying sit around and make judgement calls on which "conference is the best" so they can award playoff spots.  The CCG champs takes care of 5 of them, but, your still making judgement calls on 3 other spots.  

 

Take this year, people are sitting back and using an extremely small sample size and determining that the SEC is so much better than the Big Ten.  I call BS on that.  There is no way someone can sit around and claim for a fact that one of these conferences is better than the other one with the data we have.

 

We should be promoting more non-con games between power 5 conferences instead of discouraging them.  Do we really need or want 9 conference games against the roughly the same teams year after year after year with very little change in the schedule?

Edited January 5, 2018 by BigRedBuster

[Mudhen]

PEOPLE!  Be happy  there is a playoff system nowdays, compared to the 60's forward, when there was
no playoff system around, and a Big 10 team and Pac10 team was locked into going to the Rose Bowl.
It sucked!
As an old fart, I remember those days. College football fans were begging for a playoff system!
It's not perfect now. I don't think any playoff system would be.
I hate Bama like most everyone else on this board, and they didn't "earn" the right to be there, but they
are one of the top 4 best teams.
Go back last month before the Auburn-UCF matchup results. Only about 1 in 10 thought UCF would win.
OK, lets guess what Vegas would make a line back in early Dec. after the regular season ended.
Bama vs. Wisc.  +7
Bama vs. Clemson +3
Bama vs. Oklahoma even money
Bama vs. Ohio St. +9 1/2
Bama vs. Georgia +3
Bama vs. Auburn (2nd meeting, +3)
Bama vs. UCF +13
This is just a guesstimate, you may have a opinion a few points one way or the other, and that's fine.
I hate Bama, but they should be there if the criteria is "The 4 best teams"

[Guy Chamberlin]

I don't like Alabama. I have no feeling for Georgia. There's not even a human interest angle to work with. No plans to watch the game and I don't care who wins.

 

But the job was to pick the four best teams to be in a four team playoff, and you didn't have to be an SEC homer to think Alabama was the slightly better choice over Ohio State, Wisconsin, and UCF. 

 

At that point two very good Oklahoma and Clemson teams had the chance to shut the SEC out, and they didn't get the job done. That's not ESPN's fault. 

 

If we had an 8 team playoff, we still would have had Auburn and USC shutting out Penn State, Miami, and UCF, with plenty of arguments to go around.

[BigRedBuster]

47 minutes ago, Mudhen said:

PEOPLE!  Be happy  there is a playoff system nowdays, compared to the 60's forward, when there was
no playoff system around, and a Big 10 team and Pac10 team was locked into going to the Rose Bowl.
It sucked!
As an old fart, I remember those days. College football fans were begging for a playoff system!
It's not perfect now. I don't think any playoff system would be.
I hate Bama like most everyone else on this board, and they didn't "earn" the right to be there, but they
are one of the top 4 best teams.
Go back last month before the Auburn-UCF matchup results. Only about 1 in 10 thought UCF would win.
OK, lets guess what Vegas would make a line back in early Dec. after the regular season ended.
Bama vs. Wisc.  +7
Bama vs. Clemson +3
Bama vs. Oklahoma even money
Bama vs. Ohio St. +9 1/2
Bama vs. Georgia +3
Bama vs. Auburn (2nd meeting, +3)
Bama vs. UCF +13
This is just a guesstimate, you may have a opinion a few points one way or the other, and that's fine.
I hate Bama, but they should be there if the criteria is "The 4 best teams"

Oh hell yes....this is the best system we have had in my lifetime. (50 years).

 

But, that doesn't mean it doesn't need to improve and shouldn't be pointed out.

[runningblind]

1 hour ago, Mudhen said:

PEOPLE!  Be happy  there is a playoff system nowdays, compared to the 60's forward, when there was
no playoff system around, and a Big 10 team and Pac10 team was locked into going to the Rose Bowl.
It sucked!
As an old fart, I remember those days. College football fans were begging for a playoff system!
It's not perfect now. I don't think any playoff system would be.
I hate Bama like most everyone else on this board, and they didn't "earn" the right to be there, but they
are one of the top 4 best teams.
Go back last month before the Auburn-UCF matchup results. Only about 1 in 10 thought UCF would win.
OK, lets guess what Vegas would make a line back in early Dec. after the regular season ended.
Bama vs. Wisc.  +7
Bama vs. Clemson +3
Bama vs. Oklahoma even money
Bama vs. Ohio St. +9 1/2
Bama vs. Georgia +3
Bama vs. Auburn (2nd meeting, +3)
Bama vs. UCF +13
This is just a guesstimate, you may have a opinion a few points one way or the other, and that's fine.
I hate Bama, but they should be there if the criteria is "The 4 best teams"

That is like saying we give indentured servants 2 hours off per week now.  It is better by a miniscule amount, but by no means is it good enough.

Edited January 5, 2018 by runningblind

[84HuskerLaw]

In the end, the old system of letting the bowls choose their teams and the when the dust settles, the champion is selected based on the entire season and the bowl outcomes.   It was a beauty contest but with the added benefit of having a large number of voters to give a more representative sampling of football writers/watchers/experts/coaches.

 

There was always debate of who wast "the best" but a champion was determined.   There is still a great deal of beauty contest to the current system.   The reason to take conference champions is they won their invite to playoff on the field by winning their conference.  If the committee chooses their own 'best teams' then bias and influence and money, etc get in the way of the idea of earning the invite by winning your way in your regular season by winning the games needed to become conference champs.    

 

UCF is not invited because I don't think they are eligible (it is not just a beauty contest - you have to be a member of the FBS championship organization I think.  UCF could of been 25-0 and the next best team was 5-5.   They are not eligible for consideration.  Only Notre Dame is eligible for participation along with P5 schools is my understanding.  

[Decoy73]

9 hours ago, commando said:

alabama didn't even reach the SEC championship game...how did they earn the right to be playing for the national championship if they couldn't even reach the sec championship game?   if they win this game it is because they were GIVEN the chance....not because they  EARNED the chance.

This  

[Huskers93-97]

40 minutes ago, Decoy73 said:

This  

I agree too. The conferences is like a pre playoff. If you don't win the pre playoff how the hell do you get to the big show? 

 

Liken it to baseball- a team loses the super regional. But they get to go to the college World Series anyway because everyone says well they are really good and shouldn't have lost, they deserve a shot at the title. 

 

When put in context with another sport it sounds really idiotic. 

 

I say keep it simple and exciting. 8 team playoff- P5 conference champ auto in. Highest rated 3 G5 conference champs are seeds 6,7,8 

 

G5 gets a fair shake, have the Cinderella effect every year like march madness and if they don't belong the 1,2,3 seeds of the P5 will take them out easily in the first round anyway. 

 

Then only conference champs and no debate about who is deserving. If you deserve it win your conference- that's in their hands

[grandpasknee]

I don't view this as the college championship game, but that doesn't mean I won't watch it.  It is a college football game between to very good teams.  Last chance to watch college football for 8 months.  I'll watch it just because I'm a football fan.

[HIHusker]

14 hours ago, Nebfanatic said:

Just like OSU was given the chance last year. Imo only one team earned the 4th spot and that was UCF who was never going to make it anyway. No other team earned it. OSU certainly didn't, losing by 5 touchdowns to Iowa. USC didn't earn it. Wisconsin had a chance to earn it but they didn't either. So no one earned that spot, no one else deserved it besides 1 team and we all know G5 always gets snubbed. That shouldn't be a surprise. If Alabama didn't get in I promise you UCF would NOT have been their replacement. So please tell me, who did earn that spot? Every team had their flaw, Bama was just the best of the bunch. 

Hate to admit it but he's right....happy offseason everyone, see you all around spring game time.

[Mudhen]

On 1/5/2018 at 3:06 PM, Mudhen said:

PEOPLE!  Be happy  there is a playoff system nowdays, compared to the 60's forward, when there was
no playoff system around, and a Big 10 team and Pac10 team was locked into going to the Rose Bowl.
It sucked!
As an old fart, I remember those days. College football fans were begging for a playoff system!
It's not perfect now. I don't think any playoff system would be.
I hate Bama like most everyone else on this board, and they didn't "earn" the right to be there, but they
are one of the top 4 best teams.
Go back last month before the Auburn-UCF matchup results. Only about 1 in 10 thought UCF would win.
OK, lets guess what Vegas would make a line back in early Dec. after the regular season ended.
Bama vs. Wisc.  +7
Bama vs. Clemson +3
Bama vs. Oklahoma even money
Bama vs. Ohio St. +9 1/2
Bama vs. Georgia +3
Bama vs. Auburn (2nd meeting, +3)
Bama vs. UCF +13
This is just a guesstimate, you may have a opinion a few points one way or the other, and that's fine.
I hate Bama, but they should be there if the criteria is "The 4 best teams"

On 1/5/2018 at 4:33 PM, runningblind said:

That is like saying we give indentured servants 2 hours off per week now.  It is better by a miniscule amount, but by no means is it good enough.

 I understand what you're saying runningblind.
It's not a perfect system. Maybe someday.
I would guess 99% of college football fans think the committee got the first 3 teams right.
It's just that fans differ on the last Bama selection.
I'm just so glad I'm out of the "Dark Ages" of college football, when on a Saturday afternoon,
there would only be 3 games on, and watching them in black & white. It sucked.
As for bad ump/referee calls, there was no such thing as reversals from instant replay.
That was in a futuristic dream world.
Also much better rules for protecting the players. College Football has evolved over the years for
the better. I'll take the current playoff system with it's warts over none.

 

 

[runningblind]

2 hours ago, Mudhen said:

 I understand what you're saying runningblind.
It's not a perfect system. Maybe someday.
I would guess 99% of college football fans think the committee got the first 3 teams right.
It's just that fans differ on the last Bama selection.
I'm just so glad I'm out of the "Dark Ages" of college football, when on a Saturday afternoon,
there would only be 3 games on, and watching them in black & white. It sucked.
As for bad ump/referee calls, there was no such thing as reversals from instant replay.
That was in a futuristic dream world.
Also much better rules for protecting the players. College Football has evolved over the years for
the better. I'll take the current playoff system with it's warts over none.

 

 

I agree with you, it is better.  I was just saying I don't have to be completely happy yet either.  Why not 8 or 12 or 16? Sure most years #1 would throttle #16, but how bout that year they don't? The big boys afraid?

 

It boggles my mind that this one sport is so different than every other, and it is due to greed.  They think they will lose money by taking away bowls, but they would actually make more. The NCAA is an absolute joke.

[Cdog923]

On 1/5/2018 at 9:03 AM, Nebfanatic said:

Alabama was one of tge best 4 and they deserve to be there. Its pretty annoying everyone wants to whine about it

 

By what metric was Alabama one of the best four teams in the country? They weren't even the best team in their division? 

[Moiraine]

8 hours ago, Cdog923 said:

 

By what metric was Alabama one of the best four teams in the country? They weren't even the best team in their division? 

 

 

Which teams do you think would beat Alabama 3+ times out of 5? I don't think there are 4 teams that would beat Alabama 3 times out of 5. There is no metric, because we don't have a (big enough) playoff.

 

I happen to be of the opinion that when you have only 4 teams making the playoff, the goal shouldn't be the "best" 4 teams, because "best" is so subjective and when we play so few cross-conference games, it's almost impossible to know how good these teams actually are. It isn't like the NFL where your divisions are much more even and you have to play several cross division games. Within an FBS conference they're just beating each other, and how good that conference in is also subjective. If we're lucky, each good team has played 1 good team from another conference, but even that doesn't always happen. If memory serves me, there have been 2 years in the past 3-5 seasons where the SEC had a dismal post season record. During the season it was hard to know they just weren't that good.

Which is why the ideal situation would be to put the best team in each conference into a playoff.

Edited January 7, 2018 by Moiraine