SI's Stewart Mandel has a story today comparing the Hokies to The Buzzsaw That Is The Arizona Cardinals. He gives the positives and negatives of the current BCS system and how a playoff could hurt college football rather than help it.

One idea he throws out is the 9-4 Hokies getting hot at the right time, just like The Buzzsaw, and cheapening college football's regular season.

The Virginia Tech Hokies are a more appropriate college parallel to the Cardinals. The Hokies won the ACC last season with a 9-4 record. They were ranked 19th in the final BCS standings and hadn't entered the national-title discussion since the preseason.

However, in a playoff, Virginia Tech would have been guaranteed a berth. (Every other major sport, college and professional, gives first dibs to conference/division champions. College football wouldn't be any different.) Who's to say the Hokies couldn't have gotten hot, pulled off a couple of upsets and won the whole thing?

A national champion with four losses. There goes your "meaningful" regular season.

Just more fuel for the Playoff vs. BCS debate.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?