CFP sucks: here's what an ACTUAL playoff would look like
- December 14: First Round games on campuses
- December 21: Second Round games on campuses
- NYE & NYD: Quarterfinal Bowl Games (rotation)
- January 11: Semifinal Bowl Games (rotation)
- January 20: Rose Bowl National Championship
Rose Bowl should always be the national championship.
10 automatic bids to conference champions
22 at-large bids
I seeded this using the CFP Top-25 and used ESPN FPI to fill the rest out.
Tournament bracket is seeded with an S curve and deviates by preventing any regular season rematches IF POSSIBLE in the First and Second Rounds.
December 8th, 2019 at 10:11 PM ^
Appreciate the work, but no schools would agree to playing that many games after a season of football.
an 8 game playoff is as good as it will get.
All Power 5 Conference Champs.
2 At large P5 bids
1 Group of 5 Team
December 8th, 2019 at 10:21 PM ^
I agree with the exception of a guaranteed G5 team. Most years there is no G5 school worthy of a spot. If there’s a G5 team that has a run like UCF then they’re getting in regardless. Taking an unworthy G5 team just for the sake of taking one doesn’t make much sense to me.
December 8th, 2019 at 10:24 PM ^
There shouldn't even be a G5. Seriously Power 5 should be it. The whole league. It's so stupid that a win over EMU is the same on your record as a win over OSU.
December 8th, 2019 at 10:49 PM ^
I agree but the G5 spot does hypothetically give more incentive for teams jockeying to be #1. Combats the perception that there are lower stakes late for the teams safely in a larger field
If you’re sitting at 2 do you want to move up to play Memphis or move down and play Oregon?
December 8th, 2019 at 11:20 PM ^
I agree. The G5 can have their own playoffs.
December 8th, 2019 at 11:30 PM ^
The Group of 5 is theoretically a way that they can placate the calls of 'not being fair' to the non P5 conferences... my understanding is that the Group of 5 referred to Division 1 teams, but not in the 5 conferences... like UCF was or Boise and Utah State before them.
the G5 doesn't have to be an autobid either; it could be adjusted to the top G5 team in the Top 25... if no team meets that the last spot could go out as another wild card.
in theory, this would be similar to the NFL system. Top two teams get a bye...
December 8th, 2019 at 11:32 PM ^
@Brutus
They should bring the G5 teams into the P5
Take a look at how teams like Temple, USF, Memphis etc. have performed over time against the P5. At the top end G5 has some good programs.
December 9th, 2019 at 12:01 AM ^
Boise State made an NY6 bowl and beat Oklahoma.
December 9th, 2019 at 10:47 PM ^
Boise can either join a Power 5 conference or not. If they choose not...then they can play in the G5 playoffs.
December 9th, 2019 at 10:31 AM ^
Agreed, there's too many games in the OP's suggestion, but there needs to be a medium.
I'd say make that G5 team play in vs the lowest seed and give the top seed a bye.... you're basically talking about two teams that are lucky to be there anyway.
December 8th, 2019 at 11:01 PM ^
You mean no FBS schools.
D3 has 32 teams
D2 has 28 teams
FCS has 24 teams
But no, it's way too much for college football to handle...
December 8th, 2019 at 11:06 PM ^
?. If you think the toll on a kid at Wisonson-Whitewater is the same as a D1 kid during the season, you’re sadly mistaken. There is no reason to expand the playoffs beyond 8 teams.
December 8th, 2019 at 11:24 PM ^
If you think the toll on a kid at Oklahoma is the same as an NFL player, you are sadly mistaken. But apparently when you go from college to the pros you can all of a sudden play 20+ games with no problem.
Go to bed, you're drunk.
December 9th, 2019 at 3:20 AM ^
With no problem? Painkiller addiction is a big problem in the NFL. Guys retire earlier and earlier nowadays. Giving up millions of dollars to not get their heads smashed in. Plus you always have some teams in the playoffs with some guy playing CB or something who was bagging groceries a couple weeks before.
December 9th, 2019 at 8:53 AM ^
Because you dont have those same problem in college? They have twice as many players and by the end of the season some freshman nobody is taking snaps.
We can do this over and over. You cant defend that D2 can play 16 games and somehow FCS cant.
December 9th, 2019 at 10:00 AM ^
I think the main difference between college and professional is that you're pretty much forcing kids who aren't compensated with millions of dollars to play an NFL length season practically.
Idk why, but to me it makes the argument that they're just students playing a sport a bit untenable.
December 9th, 2019 at 5:15 AM ^
Wrong argument bruh.
December 9th, 2019 at 10:06 AM ^
But apparently when you go from college to the pros you can all of a sudden play 20+ games with no problem.
Because, ya know, NFL teams don't have tens of millions of dollars to spend on trainers, technology, facilities, etc. or anything related to player health.
December 9th, 2019 at 10:21 AM ^
Because D1 college programs dont have tens of millions of dollars for their programs? Are you serious?
December 9th, 2019 at 1:34 PM ^
Because D1 college programs dont have tens of millions of dollars for their programs? Are you serious?
There's a big difference between amateur and pro support. For one, pros aren't sleeping on dorm beds.
December 9th, 2019 at 6:57 AM ^
I may be wrong but those Levels have 9 game regular season?
December 9th, 2019 at 10:35 AM ^
No. Montana played 12 regular season games before their first FCS playoff game.
But you have to realize that FCS kids have harder skulls. They are far less susceptible to concussions. It's science.
December 9th, 2019 at 12:02 PM ^
Last season, Ferris played 16 games in 16 weeks. I'll admit it was a bit of an outlier, as they had to forfeit their first-round bye that would have otherwise given them a week off, and they only played 12 games prior to their first playoff game this season, but it does happen, seemingly without any major ill effects...
December 8th, 2019 at 11:16 PM ^
Basically no school would agree to the same playoff system most states have for high school football or what D2 and D3 have been doing forever. 32 might be too much but 16 is realistic or we’ll just have the same 5 or 6 teams in the playoffs every year.
December 9th, 2019 at 4:44 AM ^
An 8 team playoff after the conference championship week would be great, but you have to integrate the conference championship games into the process.
Winner of each p5 conference championship game is automatically part of the 8 teams, loser cannot be included. The other 3 teams are chosen from a pool of the p5 third place finishers and other D1 teams not in a P5 conference. This effectively gives you a 13 team playoff.
You could argue this is unfair to p5 conference championship participants. An alternative is eliminate the conference championship games and go to a 16 team playoff. 1st and 2nd place p5 finishers are auto in with the other 6 teams coming from a pool of 3rd place p5 finishers and D1 teams not in a p5 conference.
The proccess has to include a mechanism for adjusting the conferences that get auto bids (shrink, enlarge or make changes which conferences get auto bids)
December 9th, 2019 at 8:43 AM ^
The loser of the conference championship can't be included in the playoff, but a team that didn't make the game can still get in?
December 9th, 2019 at 3:49 PM ^
Hence the part about the possible unfairness of keeping the conference championships as part of the playoff. Don't like that, go to straight 16.
December 9th, 2019 at 8:53 AM ^
Your second paragraph has to be one of the most awfully conceived ideas that has ever entered a humans head in these regards. As in, "What if that losing team is actually the second best team in the country?" and "How do you determine the 3rd best team under the current division structure?".
Conference championship games continue to be very uneven and generally add no useful purpose in determining a national championship. Eliminate conference divisions and this silly game from the schedule. Require the top half of each conference, from the previous year, to play each other the following year. Play 10 conference games plus 1 OOC. There will be bye weeks scheduled for the last two weekends of the regular season-each team will receive one. Make it a 16 team seeded playoff which begins immediately and the higher seeded team is the home team the first two rounds-the teams are re-seeded after the first round. The losers of the first two rounds enter the regular, post-season bowl schedule.
The rewards and excitement returns to college post season play...and the recruiting playing field slowly gets leveled.
December 9th, 2019 at 3:47 PM ^
So, what if the 2nd best team in the NFL happens to be in the same division as the best team. They go to the wild card and have a much more difficult path.
What if whomever is the second best team happens to lose in the first round of the playoff by some fluke or terrible weather? They are eliminated.
Treat the conference championship games as first round of the playoffs. Not that hard.
December 9th, 2019 at 5:26 PM ^
Treat the conference championship games as first round of the playoffs. Not that hard.
Except that it doesn't make sense. You're putting in wildcards that get a week off if you look at it that way. Exact opposite of the NFL system.
December 10th, 2019 at 5:56 AM ^
Which is why a full 16 team playoff with elimination of the conference championship game is the best option. This is a work around in case there is insistence on keeping the conference championship games.
Another option is keep the conference championship games and select 6 at large bids. The at large bids play square off the same week of the conference championship, the 3 winners of the at large games and the 5 conference champs constitute the 8 team field.
December 9th, 2019 at 8:55 AM ^
I would challenge that. Why wouldn’t they play that many games? Treat cupcakes like the NFL treats preseason games and play 2-3 deep at every position to get everyone reps. Good recruiting tool, lots of minutes even if you aren’t a starter.
2 early season OOC
9 game conference schedule
conference championship game
up to 5 playoff games
National tournament as OP describes, G5 can still get at large bids if worthy, but would get a second tournament invite similar to the NIT.
December 9th, 2019 at 12:21 PM ^
Agreed, plus: when do the athletes who are taking actual in class courses have time for finals.
My view is the season should be pulled back before Thanksgiving, then after a week off a first round or Conference finals should be played the Saturday of the week after Thanksgiving. All other rounds after final exams are over. This will never happen because $$$.
December 8th, 2019 at 10:12 PM ^
32 teams is too many. They aren’t going to play 17 games.
December 8th, 2019 at 11:00 PM ^
But Division 3 can handle 32 teams...
December 8th, 2019 at 11:16 PM ^
They only play 10 regular season games. I’m not giving up two weeks of the regular season so Miami ohio can be in the playoffs. OSU already beat them by 70 this year. I would like an 8 or 6 team playoff. If you win your P5 conference you deserve a shot. It removes all subjectivity of conference opinion and may encourage a team to test themselves in the ooc schedule.
December 8th, 2019 at 11:27 PM ^
Because there is so much value to you as a fan playing MTSU, Army, Rutgers, instead of playing in the playoff year after year.
Think about it...as a Michigan fan you are going to give up 2 Regular Season games for almost a guaranteed playoff game every year. If you wouldn't trade MTSU and Army for a playoff game and a shot at winning it all year after year, I don't know what to tell you.
December 8th, 2019 at 11:39 PM ^
This.
A ten game season (remove the Conference Championship game concept entirely) allows for enough games for seeding. You'd sometimes end up teams tying for the conference title but not a huge deal. A 32 team playoff would be worth Billions more in tv revenue. You could still keep the minor bowl structure for teams that don't make it/G5 etc. so their fans have a place to travel and tv gets games (equivalent of NIT sideshow in March).
As a fan I like the set-up but I'm amazed the NCAA/Schools don't see the ridiculous amounts of money to be made here. I'm sure Warde et al. would happily charge me 2x my "premium game" fees for my seats. That and the TV revenue should move this kind of concept.
December 9th, 2019 at 6:57 AM ^
The problem is that for a program like Michigan, those two games you're giving up are almost certainly both going to be home dates. There is no way Michigan or any other blue blood program is going to accept going from a 12 game regular season where they'll have 7 home games to a 10 game regular season where you'll have 5, maybe six home games.
Give up the revenue from two home games per season? Dream on.
December 9th, 2019 at 9:02 AM ^
Yeah, most people seem to forget this when they reference a 32 team playoff like D2.
I really don’t get why people clamor for this extended playoff selection other than it’s perceived as a way to get Michigan a backdoor path to the playoffs.
LSU just wiped the now number 5 team off the field at a neutral site (Georgia) and then consider Florida is now the number 6 team and they lost by double digits to LSU and to Georgia at home. So what does moving the amount of playoff teams to even 8 do? In my opinion, all it would’ve done this year is create a round of quasi blowouts before the field is reduce to the big 3 and some poor whipping boy for LSU.
December 9th, 2019 at 10:31 AM ^
Go look at the first 4 Playoff champs. Look at who they lost to during the season.
Now convince anyone with a pulse that those teams couldn't have lost in a 32 team tournament.
The first 3 champs lost HOME games to unranked teams. 4th champ lost a road game to a top 10 team.
But no, these teams would never lose in a playoff and youd just get blowouts.
Get a new argument, this one fails miserably.
December 9th, 2019 at 11:02 AM ^
I kept my argument all towards this year, but I’ll play along; Give me your miracle scenario on how the following happens either on a neutral field or as an away game:
Florida bleats Clemson
Oregon beats OSU
Baylor beats LSU
If those are higher seed hosts game you’re looking at roughly an 11-13 point spread for all three games, which if you read my post said quasi blowouts, which is what I consider a game where another team clearly has more talent but doesn’t start a first quarter boat race but they are never threatened past halftime and they end up winning by 10-14 points.
Could an upset happen? Of course. Likely? Doubtful. I don’t think you quite understand what the gap is between those three teams is compared to the rest of college football.
December 9th, 2019 at 11:56 AM ^
So because this years playoff supports yours argument, you ignore the majority of the years supports my argument?
There really isn't any point in discussing this if you just want to ignore history.
December 9th, 2019 at 1:19 PM ^
Ok cool. Hook em
December 9th, 2019 at 11:40 AM ^
Losing in Aug/Sep to a fringe team that is better than or more athletic than they’ve been in the past is a far cry from losing in December when the loser goes home.
Oklahoma is a case in point. They got surprised by Texas mid-year last year, then handled them easily in December. Same would have happened this year if they played KSU in the Big-12 championship.
December 9th, 2019 at 12:30 PM ^
Agree with this. I think we need to have 2 extra spots to allow for seemingly “great” teams that didn’t have a chance to get tested or can attribute a single loss to something extraordinary (e.g. UCF/Boise, or a loss because QB and RB were out for a week and that was the week they played a top-10 team), but generally adding teams to this conversation isn’t going to convince me that LSU, Clemson or OSU prevail.
If I’m LSU, I have no interest in spending a Dec weekend playing Miami (NTM).
December 9th, 2019 at 11:40 AM ^
You nailed it. 0% chance any P5 school willingly gives up home games and home revenue.
December 8th, 2019 at 10:12 PM ^
I don't like our 2nd round matchup with Clemson but otherwise love it.
December 8th, 2019 at 10:12 PM ^
32 is way too much that’s 17 games for the winner And loser if you take out the CC.
December 8th, 2019 at 10:51 PM ^
They have 24 playoff teams in fcs. No one says their too many games there