BCS Rankings 2011: More Proof College Football Needs a Playoff

Now that the first BCS Rankings of 2011 have been released, we should have a clearer picture of the best teams in college football. Unfortunately, the current system does not promote clarity.

Seven weeks of games should start separating the good teams from the truly great teams.

However, this year has more quality teams than ever before. There are a number of teams that have legitimate claims to the best in the nation this season. This is great for fans, but bad for voters.

After the conference championship games are played, two human polls and six computer polls decide which two teams have earned the right to play in the BCS National Championship Game. Players from all over the country gave their blood, sweat and tears over the course of four months (plus summer and spring practices), and their fate is decided by a computer and a bunch of members of the media, many of whom have never played the game.

This concept is a travesty for a sport at this level of popularity.

Championships should be decided on the field. There is no way to dispute this notion. While some teams are given a chance, most FBS teams know before the season starts that they have absolutely no shot at hoisting the AFCA National Championship Trophy.

One of the greatest feelings for a team in any sport is to go into the season knowing that anything is possible. The worst NFL team in one year has a chance of winning the Super Bowl the next season. Even in college basketball, any one of 345 teams has a shot at winning the title if they keep winning. However in college football, going undefeated has repeatedly not been enough.

The BCS has gotten away with this system in recent years. Enough teams have lost before the championship game for there to be little argument about who should play. The only debate over the past few years has been whether Boise State or TCU is deserving of a chance to compete with the big boys.

The last major-conference team to go undefeated and not play for the BCS Championship Game was Auburn in 2004. However, this season there are still 10 remaining undefeated teams. While a few still have to play each other, there can be as many as seven undefeated teams when the season ends (LSU/Alabama, Oklahoma/Oklahoma State/Kansas State, Wisconsin, Clemson, Stanford, Boise State, and Houston).

How can you call a team a champion when there would be so many teams left unchallenged?

The only real solution is an eight-team playoff.

The winner of each of the six BCS conferences, plus two at-large bids would play in a seeded bracket over three weeks. While there will be some complaints over who gets the last two spots, it is easier to justify leaving out the ninth-best team in the country than the third. After the tournament is completed, the team left will have beaten the best teams the NCAA has to offer. There will be nothing to debate.

The biggest hindrance to this type of format is money. Stadiums that host the bowl games as well as their sponsors make millions by holding the BCS Bowls. The solution would be to hold every playoff game in a neutral location at one of the current bowl stadiums. The games will still be as popular, and there will be no shortage of things for Allstate and Discover to sponsor.

In reality, this argument is a no-brainer. It would increase the sport’s popularity, finally create a sense of fairness, and should only increase the pot that every draws their money from.

Hopefully this season will create so much of a mess, college football will be forced to change its ways.