Playoff Expansion Discussion

[Digger]

Texas A&M’s Mike Elko on how big playoff should be: “I don’t know why you ask us. It doesn’t matter what we think. I don’t know why we’re trying to become a trophy sport. What does Mike Elko want? 40. Then I won’t get fired. It's OK to make it hard to get to the playoff"

 

[Digger]

Sark on the playoff-or-bust mentality: “I watched a coach get fired 5 games into the season after making the semifinals the year before. That’s concerning for the health of our sport. It’s not a healthy way to live for our fan bases or donors.”

 

[Digger]

@Clowfb


Elko has consistently been most transparent coach when asked about this. When I was with him this spring, he told me flatly, “We don’t want to become the NCAA basketball tournament.” I get the push for 24 and inclusivity element. But feels more like an invitational than playoff.

 

[Middawg]

My message to the outspoken 0.099% of college football Curmudgeons in the media and on social media dismissing expansion is that in the proposed 24 team setup...

Don't blink, because over 8 days and two weekends in early Dec and 16 on campus home games, two thirds of the participants will be quickly eliminated and starting their offseasons, as the Final 8 bracket is established going into New Years.

 

[Halfmilluratrojan]

Sark on the playoff-or-bust mentality: “I watched a coach get fired 5 games into the season after making the semifinals the year before. That’s concerning for the health of our sport. It’s not a healthy way to live for our fan bases or donors.”

Not a bad point

 

[ThomasTomasz]

My message to the outspoken 0.099% of college football Curmudgeons in the media and on social media dismissing expansion is that in the proposed 24 team setup...

Don't blink, because over 8 days and two weekends in early Dec and 16 on campus home games, two thirds of the participants will be quickly eliminated and starting their offseasons, as the Final 8 bracket is established going into New Years.

This essentially happens now anyway with the amount of players who sit out meaningless bowl games. So give us some better football in the middle of December.

 

[Da_Bull]

This essentially happens now anyway with the amount of players who sit out meaningless bowl games. So give us some better football in the middle of December.

That's my biggest reason for the 24 team format is the bowl games are virtually dead.

 

[Da_Bull]

Starting to see several variations of CFB and how it can be set up for the future. There's the one where teams and conferences will have to make sacrifices for the greater good of all or will be survival of the fittest.

Smaller conferences and almost a return to previous conferences. This would probably be born from or adjusted with the conferences sharing tv revenue and going to a full CFB tv contract with multiple entities. Would require the sec and big to swallow pride and reduce membership to allow more conferences to make it make sense. This will likely not happen. We aren't commies. IMO the 24 will happen. That above will force the sec to accept to keep control of its contracts. Will still give the big and sec the superiority while still giving something to the B12 and ACC without giving them everything.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

This essentially happens now anyway with the amount of players who sit out meaningless bowl games. So give us some better football in the middle of December.

Honestly the players opting out is the caveat to this whole entire thing.

It wasn't the only reason, but it certainly was the biggest driving factor in the eventual death of the bowl games.

I mean if you think about it, if players never opt out, and still treated the bowl games as big a deal as they did in the eras we grew up watching..........I'd argue that we'd still be sitting at a 4 team playoff, and maybe even still arguing that we don't even need that.

The players started caring about themselves more than the program, and self-serving, greedy people with money panicked and desperately tried to give the players more and more and more so that they would stick around.

In reality, all you had to do was change the rules to FORCE the f***ing players to do what was the right thing, and make them stay, and play, for the entirety of the season, NFL career be damned.

 

[AJBuckeye]

From what I have read pretty much all conferences and universities are on-board with the 24 team playoffs with the exception of the SEC. Only reasons I can think is that they still get the benefit of the doubt every year when it comes to the selection process which clearly stands out when you look at there performance the last 3 post seasons.

Here is a ranking system that utilizes computer polls that were determined by a pre-season set of guidelines to determine rankings.

Computer Rankings by Bucklin Majority

Comparing this to the ESecPN Committee rankings, BYU and ND would have gotten ahead of Oklahoma and Miami.

Then when you jump out to 16 the Committee ESecPN rankings would have put Texas in over USC.

When you go out to 24 there really weren't any SEC teams in the mix so at the end of the day the expansion to 24 teams will likely be a negative impact on the SEC revenues.

Next point, the SEC is really the only power 4 conference that really cares about keeping an SEC championship game and why wouldn't they. They are looking at the revenues generated from that game. They also are well aware that the committee will not penalize the loser of that game. That was clearly evident when Alabama got smoked and ended up being the only Conference Championship game loser to not drop a spot in the final poll. The other 40 plus CCG losers all drop in the final poll.

Now that we got to our 12 team playoff, the idea was that this would create a more compelling regular season which I think it does. However now we got the SEC cancelling multiple P4 OOC games because the SEC realizes the committee values fewer losses far above playing a highly ranked OOC team.

The Big Ten ideally want a 24 team playoff and also a head to head OOC between the SEC and the Big Ten. Fat chance that will happen considered the SEC just backed out of games vs Florida State Oklahoma St and Louisville.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

From what I have read pretty much all conferences and universities are on-board with the 24 team playoffs with the exception of the SEC. Only reasons I can think is that they still get the benefit of the doubt every year when it comes to the selection process which clearly stands out when you look at there performance the last 3 post seasons.

Here is a ranking system that utilizes computer polls that were determined by a pre-season set of guidelines to determine rankings.

Computer Rankings by Bucklin Majority

Comparing this to the ESecPN Committee rankings, BYU and ND would have gotten ahead of Oklahoma and Miami.

Then when you jump out to 16 the Committee ESecPN rankings would have put Texas in over USC.

When you go out to 24 there really weren't any SEC teams in the mix so at the end of the day the expansion to 24 teams will likely be a negative impact on the SEC revenues.

Next point, the SEC is really the only power 4 conference that really cares about keeping an SEC championship game and why wouldn't they. They are looking at the revenues generated from that game. They also are well aware that the committee will not penalize the loser of that game. That was clearly evident when Alabama got smoked and ended up being the only Conference Championship game loser to not drop a spot in the final poll. The other 40 plus CCG losers all drop in the final poll.

Now that we got to our 12 team playoff, the idea was that this would create a more compelling regular season which I think it does. However now we got the SEC cancelling multiple P4 OOC games because the SEC realizes the committee values fewer losses far above playing a highly ranked OOC team.

The Big Ten ideally want a 24 team playoff and also a head to head OOC between the SEC and the Big Ten. Fat chance that will happen considered the SEC just backed out of games vs Florida State Oklahoma St and Louisville.

To be fair, Ohio State is essentially an SEC team getting "SEC treatment" while playing in the B10.

They benefitted from the 2024 12 team playoff format, and while they did technically drop last year.......stayed in the the top 2 after losing to Indiana. Obviously they weren't going to stay #1.

Not that I'm disagreeing with your premise. I just wanted to make sure we're all clear here...........

 

[ThomasTomasz]

 

[cooljack]

From what I have read pretty much all conferences and universities are on-board with the 24 team playoffs with the exception of the SEC. Only reasons I can think is that they still get the benefit of the doubt every year when it comes to the selection process which clearly stands out when you look at there performance the last 3 post seasons.

Here is a ranking system that utilizes computer polls that were determined by a pre-season set of guidelines to determine rankings.

Computer Rankings by Bucklin Majority

Comparing this to the ESecPN Committee rankings, BYU and ND would have gotten ahead of Oklahoma and Miami.

Stopped reading at this point.
Miami beat ND. Computers alone don't cut it. Reason trumps logic every time.

 

[AJBuckeye]

Stopped reading at this point.
Miami beat ND. Computers alone don't cut it. Reason trumps logic every time.

You can't just look at one game when you evaluate an entire season. That game was week one ND was on the road in a very tight game. That same day Alabama got throttled to what we found to be a not good FSU team. Some how that game did not matter. Per strictly computer polls both Miami and ND would have been in the field. I am not ND fan but they got screwed.

 

[AJBuckeye]

To be fair, Ohio State is essentially an SEC team getting "SEC treatment" while playing in the B10.

They benefitted from the 2024 12 team playoff format, and while they did technically drop last year.......stayed in the the top 2 after losing to Indiana. Obviously they weren't going to stay #1.

Not that I'm disagreeing with your premise. I just wanted to make sure we're all clear here...........

Points well taken. Ohio State dropping last year was some what inconsequential as it had little to no bearing in the playoff with a bye.

I would not say that Ohio State benefitted in 2024 other than there was a decision prior to the season that went from a 4 team playoff to a 12 team playoff. If that did not happen, half of the fan base would have called for Day's head.

Bama on the other hand significantly benefitted. They lost to FSU badly week 1 then got destroyed in the SEC championship game. It was a non-competitive game and somehow with this perfomance, the committee's conclusion was that this would be the first team not to drop in the final poll after losing a CCG. Keep in mind every other CCG loser in the history of this sport has dropped.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

I would not say that Ohio State benefitted in 2024 other than there was a decision prior to the season that went from a 4 team playoff to a 12 team playoff. If that did not happen, half of the fan base would have called for Day's head.

You answered your own question here.......

Keep in mind every other CCG loser in the history of this sport has dropped.

Well that's not entirely true, because we wouldn't have gotten a CFP in the first place if this was.......................

 

[cooljack]

You can't just look at one game when you evaluate an entire season. That game was week one ND was on the road in a very tight game. That same day Alabama got throttled to what we found to be a not good FSU team. Some how that game did not matter. Per strictly computer polls both Miami and ND would have been in the field. I am not ND fan but they got screwed.

They got screwed. Sure. It happens. But if they had won that game they would have been in. Got nobody to blame but self.

 

[AJBuckeye]

They got screwed. Sure. It happens. But if they had won that game they would have been in. Got nobody to blame but self.

Agree that if they had won that game ND was in. On the flip side Bama got throttle by a bad FSU team week one then were not even competitive in the SEC CCG. Shouldn't Bama also been in the position where they should have had nobody to blame but themself?

The polls that were strictly computers only had them clearly on the outside. But our biased ESecPN committee made sure that was not going to happen.

 

[cooljack]

Agree that if they had won that game ND was in. On the flip side Bama got throttle by a bad FSU team week one then were not even competitive in the SEC CCG. Shouldn't Bama also been in the position where they should have had nobody to blame but themself?

The polls that were strictly computers only had them clearly on the outside. But our biased ESecPN committee made sure that was not going to happen.

I think they deserved it ahead of ND.

 

[AJBuckeye]

I think they deserved it ahead of ND.

Fair enough. Based on how Bama performed in the playoff I strongly disagree.

I just prefer to have the selection process be determined by an unbiased set a criteria established prior to the start of the season. Having a committee that ESPN has complete access that will lobby for certain outcomes does not work for me.