An Eight-Team Playoff Would Have Solved it All. Too Bad. For Us. And Them.
While everyone, including the selection committee, is agonizing over the impossible choice that the committee had to make regarding that fourth playoff slot, I will remind you again of how smart an eight-team playoff would be.
Instead of choosing between Notre Dame and Texas A&M, they could simply play each other.
Holy smokes. No data. No arguing. Just settle it on a 100-yard field.
When I was a student at Wisconsin a long, long time ago, there was an aging, beloved columnist, Roundy Coughlin, who had a signature phrase that fits this situation quaintly and perfectly:
"What more could be fairer?’’
Some of the other matchups would be interesting, too. Instead of dismissing Oklahoma for its wobbly start, the Sooners, having won the Big 12, would get a shot at Clemson.
Tall order? Yes. Appropriate reward for winning a Power 5 conference? Yes. Having an opportunity to prove those long-ago losses are irrelevant? Yes.
Yes, Oregon would look like a lamb going against the lion of Alabama. But a playoff berth would have given meaning and excitement to this strange Pac-12 season.
Accomplishing all of this would require exactly two more games and one more week. That’s not a big deal.
Not only would we have a national championship that was settled on the field. The college-football world, which faces a daunting economic challenge, would have the increased revenue from an expanded playoff that is light-years ahead of this pockmarked four-team playoff.
What more could be fairer?
THE MATCHUPS
No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 8 Oregon
OK, Pac-12 you’re in. Let’s see what you’ve got. And for the Tide, a reward for a dominant season. In the Sugar Bowl.
No. 2 Clemson vs. No. 7 Oklahoma
Let’s see what revived Oklahoma can do against the perennial-power Tigers, who have atoned from that tough trip to South Bend by looking like a juggernaut in their rematch with the Irish. In the Orange Bowl.
No. 3 Ohio State vs. No. 6 Cincinnati
Yes, Ohio State has failed to look like a world-beater in its sawed-off season. This all-Ohio matchup would be an interesting rivalry matchup that finally gives the Group of 5 a chance. And the Buckeyes better watch out. In the Rose Bowl. Wherever it ends up being played. (Update: Rose Bowl will now be played in Arlington, TX).
No. 4 Notre Dame vs. No. 5 Texas A&M
Instead of lobbying and keeping their fingers crossed, the Fighting Irish and the Aggies settle things where they ought to be settled. By playing a football game. In the Fiesta Bowl.
Winners advance to the semi-finals in Dallas and Atlanta, or wherever. With no fans (let’s hope) in the stands, location doesn’t really matter that much. Do that on Jan. 11, the Monday night when the championship game is scheduled to be played.
And then play the new championship game on Jan. 18, or whenever. Keep it in Atlanta, Move it to Indianapolis, or wherever.
This unprecedented, unloved year would have been the perfect opportunity to test-drive an eight-team playoff with no obligation to keep it moving forward.
Too bad. For us. And for them.