CHAMPAIGN, IL (Chambana Today) – Ok. I’m in. The new College Football Playoff is a winner in my book, and I think that the NCAA and networks would agree. After some pretty heavy banter and controversy about if the committee “got it right”, we ended up with some great semifinal games and a match up that probably involves the two best teams. That was the goal, and it seems to have been achieved.
As with the March Madness Bracketology, there was heavy debate about what teams got snubbed, what teams didn’t deserve to be included, and seeding. Lots of discussion on social media, lots of different viewpoints on the sports networks, which means lots of buzz for college football. Also, like March Madness, these controversies are unavoidable and make the tournament that much more compelling. Last year’s BCS format, excluding undefeated Florida State, foreshadowed the controversy that playoff selection brings forth, the weight different criteria hold and the legitimacy of analytics versus brand name and “the eye test”. None of it is perfect and never will be. But that’s what creates the buzz and compels people to watch. It keeps people talking about the sport and watching, not only as fans of the sport, but also to verify their opinions of what teams are most deserving or the best. As an Indiana fan, I heard a lot of the experts — and far from experts — clamoring on about how the Hoosiers didn’t belong. I was already invested, but even after IU was eliminated, I was compelled to keep watching to see how the team that eliminated them, Notre Dame, fared for the rest of the playoffs. Yes, the early rounds had some not very competitive games, but much like any tournament higher seeds often beat lower seeds. We’ve been here before. This is the nature of the playoff format.
That’s not to say that there isn’t a need to examine ways the format could be improved. Should a conference championship win guarantee a bye? I think it should get you in, but I’m not sold on it overriding that team’s overall body of work or superseding another team’s more impressive body of work. Should there even be conference championship games? There’s too much money at stake for conference championship games not to happen, but those teams who make the championship games are forced to play an extra game that could diminish their full body work and expose players to possible injury. However, a win in that extra game could also help boost a team’s resume and secure them a spot in the playoffs that they otherwise would not have earned. Furthermore, how does that affect a team like Notre Dame who doesn’t belong to a football conference? These are just a few questions that need to be addressed, and everyone will have an opinion on them.
Obviously, plenty of things to examine, debate, and discuss. In the meantime, millions of people will be glued to their TV to watch the last college football game of the season. Mission accomplished.