Forget a BCS Playoff: FBS College Football Needs More

In hindsight of the 2008 college football season, there was more controversy than ever regarding which teams should play for the national title. First, there was the Big 12's Big Three: Oklahoma, Texas, and Texas Tech.

Next, there were those "other" one-loss teams like USC, Penn State, Florida, and Alabama. Last, there was unbeaten Utah out of the non-major Mountain West.

All eight of these teams had a legitimate reason to believe they should be competing for a national title. But only two would have the chance to play for it, and the rest would have to settle.

Penn State traveled 2,500 miles to face USC in the Trojans' backyard. Texas Tech was ruled out of the BCS picture entirely. Texas barely squeaked past two-loss Ohio State in the desert. Utah marched to the Deep South and took the Crimson Tide out. And last, Oklahoma boarded the Boomer Schooners for the national title against Florida in Miami.

Not only is the current system so out of whack, a playoff couldn't even fix it. An eight-team draw would create just as much controversy. Who would get in? Which conference gets more seeds? What would happen to minor conferences—do they continue to get snubbed?

Well, sorry, Utah, Boise State, and any other non-BCS team that has gone undefeated. We think "Insert Two or Three-Loss SEC Team Here" is better.

It would take more than a simple playoff to fix the predicament. NCAA D-II and D-III use a system that utilizes regions. There are four major regions in Division II, and each region sends six teams to the draw.

Now, for example, say this same theory is put into the current FBS.

The new system would carry eight separate regions, and each one would send two teams into the playoff draw—16 teams in total. By using this bracket system, it would also remove any of the home-field advantages we see in the BCS Bowl games today.

Sorry, sportswriters everywhere who enjoy the BCS controversy. But our national champion deserves to be crowned by the game on the field, not by a computer. Florida may, indeed, have won the BCS National Championship game, but it was because of a computer that they were there instead of a team like Utah.

Regions (Projected)

Northeast: Pitt, Penn State, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, West Virginia, Maryland

Atlantic: Clemson, North Carolina State, Louisville, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Georgia Tech

Southeast: Florida, Florida State, Miami, South Florida, Wake Forest, Auburn, Alabama, Mississippi

Lakes: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Purdue, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Indiana, Iowa

South: Texas, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Louisiana State, Arkansas, Vanderbilt

Southwest: Arizona, Arizona State, New Mexico, Nevada, Fresno State, Utah, Brigham Young, Texas Christian

Midwest: Missouri, Colorado, Kansas, Colorado State, Boise State, Kansas State, Nebraska, Iowa State

Pacific: Southern California, Oregon, Oregon State, Hawaii, Washington State, Washington, California, UCLA

So what if it would take a month to crown a champion? Watching a Final Four matchup on Christmas is far more tantalizing than enduring another Florida Atlantic vs. Central Michigan bash.

So what if the regular season would require teams to drop that ever-popular 70-7 laugher against a school that isn't even sure they have a football program?

And so what if the BCS makes money? A 16-team playoff between the nation's finest wouldn't?

Sigh...maybe someday.

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