A college football postseason that can work

Before I say anything, I just want to say that the Utah Utes are my national champions in college football for the 2008 season. Why? Because college football is stuck in an archaic tradition in which the national champion is decided by poll each year. If AP voters can choose their national champion, why can’t I choose mine?

What we all know, though, is that the college football postseason is long overdue for a change. Yes, some years, like in 2002, the BCS helped. But in other years, like 2008, the BCS was a complete disaster. Why? Because it is inherently flawed. The BCS is designed to unite the top two regular season teams in a championship game. That’s all well and good when in 2002 Ohio State and Miami (FL) were the only undefeated teams.

But what about this year? Utah and Boise State finished the regular season undefeated. Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech, USC, Florida, Alabama and Penn State all finished with a loss. How in the world can the BCS pretend to “know” which of those teams are the best two? Each of them made a good case for consideration.

So with the idea of ​​a college football playoff not being on the BCS agenda, what can be done to fix this problem? The answer is one format plus one.

Currently, the BCS pairs the top two teams at the end of the normal season. A plus one format takes bowl season into account before deciding the top two teams in the nation. Imagine this year if the bowls had been Florida beating Texas, Oklahoma beating Ohio State and Utah dismantling Alabama? Wouldn’t bowl season have justified Utah playing Florida in the title game? Imagine a national championship where both teams did more than just win the perceived “best” conferences in college football?

So here’s a postseason proposal for college football that can really work. First, add a fifth bowl to the BCS bowls. The Cotton Bowl seems like an obvious choice. Then, create a traditional rivalry between the conference champions. The following might work:

Rose Bowl: Pac 10 vs. Big 10
Fiesta Bowl: Big 12 vs. WAC
Sugar Bowl: SEC vs. MWC
Orange Bowl: ACC vs. Big East
Cotton bowl: C-USA, Sun Belt, MAC

The top two ranked teams among C-USA, Sun Belt and MAC can play in the Cotton Bowl. Notre Dame enters the Cotton Bowl if it is ranked No. 8 or higher and is also ranked higher than at least two of those conference champions.

Now all of these bowls will be played in two days to bring back the New Years tradition. Two bowls are played on December 31 and the other three on January 1. Adjust accordingly if one of them falls on a Sunday. Make these BCS bowls the last bowls played of the season. Once all bowls, including these BCS bowls, have been played, the BCS ranks the teams again.

The plus one format would require the new number one and number two to meet in the national championship game. It is perfect? No, because there will always be controversy. But does anyone ever tune in to a bowling game where their team isn’t playing? This would bring the importance of the college football regular season into the bowl season. Losing a game of bowling would be more of a disappointment than it is now; could derail your national championship aspirations.

A tiebreaker is the only true way to eliminate controversy in this sport, but we all know the BCS and the powers that be are not going to let that happen anytime soon. That is, of course, unless Obama and the administration step in and put an end to the unfair practices of the BCS. I wouldn’t hold your breath though. Until a tiebreaker can become a reality, this plus-one proposal would be the best we could get.