College Football Playoff Debate: Why the BCS Works Best

From fans to coaches, and even to athletic directors, it seems that everyone in college football nowadays is pushing for some type of a playoff system. At first thought, it seems like a dream scenario: the eight best college football teams in the country battling each other at the end of the season to be crowned "rightful" champion.

Most advocates for a playoff system say the BCS doesn't always pair up the two best teams, and that a playoff system would allow for a true champion to prove themselves. But when has the BCS not paired up the two best teams?

There will always be an argument for the third- or fourth-best team in the nation to play in the national championship game, and since there is not a playoff system, these arguments become amplified and often seem legitimate.

These are the matchups for the last five BCS National Championships, listed most recent first: Auburn/Oregon, Alabama/Texas, Oklahoma/Florida, Ohio State/LSU and Ohio State/Florida. It is hard to argue that either of these teams didn't deserve to play for a national title.

Unlike college football, the Super Bowl rarely features the two best teams over the course of the year, but rather two teams that get hot entering the playoffs. This can sometimes lead to a lopsided game; out of the last five Super Bowls, three have been decided by double-digits.

Over this past year, not many would argue that the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons were the most consistent teams in the regular season. However, they were both defeated in their first playoff game by a hot team coming off a big win.

Out of all the horror stories people dream of happening in the BCS, there are also potential nightmares in a playoff system. What if a locked-in Alabama team rests its players against Auburn?

What if an undefeated and undisputed No. 1 powerhouse loses to the Sisters of the Poor because they had a championship game the week before, while the other school was resting?

College football has the best regular season in all of American sports because every game matters, and nothing is guaranteed. A playoff system might make for a few more happy fan bases and a few less coaching casualties, but would change everything we love about this sport: the bowl game pageantry, the life-or-death regular season matchups and the end-of-season rivalry games.

The truth is, college football already has a playoff system, and it is a very good one—it is just one game and features the two best teams.