Well, there we have it: finally there's a playoff in college football's top division! We can all live happily ever after, right? Probably not! Though better than the current way of producing a champion, this will not put an end to the controversy.
The first problem is there will be only four playoff spots available to teams in pretty much six major conferences (assuming the Big East keeps its status, which is in doubt). That means at least two conferences could feel screwed when they're not represented, and possibly repeatedly screwed. Add to it that there will be a selection committee picking the teams --problem two IMO, the 'human element'-- and it makes it "personal" for the "screwed" conferences. Fast-forward to meetings a few years later, and it's possible that the "screwed" conferences refuse to sign up to continue participating in the system or a similar one, pretty much blowing up the playoff because they're pissed off at "someone". Then we're back to 1 vs. 2 in a championship.
As a fan of college football, I am glad to see ANY type of playoff system finally arrive. It's about damn time! I just believe the current computer formula used to determine the national championship match-up has been wrongly prosecuted. IMO, it is in how the formula is being applied that is the problem, not the formula itself.
Before, humans picked the two title game participants (via polls etc..) and that was a problem. Now it's the computers that do the picking, and they're the problem too? No! The constant theme with all of the systems we've deemed unsatisfactory is they leave us with only two teams to compete for the title on the field. I believe using the current formula to pick the playoff participants --whether fully or in a smaller capacity-- would be the better thing to do (and eight participants, mind you)!
I've always been of the opinion that the computer formula does a good job of putting the top six, seven and even eight teams into the top six, seven and eight. The order may not be 100% accurate, but it's always pretty damn close. Rarely are we arguing that the #2 team doesn't deserve to be in the championship game, but that the #3 team, and sometimes even the #4 are just as deserving, which leads us to resent the #2 team and the system that put them there. Sometimes, we even feel #5 and #6 may not be as deserving, but "by golly, they're playing the best football right now. Would sure like to see 'em against #1 and #2." That has always led me to believe the current formula can still be used, just in a different way.
I've always thought the formula should be used to produce the final top eight teams, then have those teams placed in a playoff. Let it be settled on the field! But though that would remove the human element, and increase the chances of each major conference being represented, it still allows for controversy when a conference comes up short of being represented.
That leads to another suggestion that is growing on me, and I will credit Houston sports talk host Nick Wright of Sports Radio 610, whom i heard it from first. The suggestion is defining a solid five major conferences that would compete for the first five playoff spots. The champions of the five conferences would automatically make the playoff, leaving just three spots to fill. Being that the computer formula isn't the devil it has been made it out to be, the final three teams would be determind by computer ranking. That means the top three teams not to win their conference championship make it in. Most importantly, however, is NCLB - No Conference Left Behind, which makes for happy conferences less likely to throw wrenches.
With either my way or the Wright way (no pun), the teams could be placed in bowl games --seven in total to determine a champion-- at the existing BCS bowl locations, and even add a couple of new ones if you'd like. Hell, even keep the name 'BCS'! Do that, and for the first time ever the words behind the abbreviation 'BCS' will make sense: a 'Series' of 'Bowls' that lead to a 'Championship'! Wait, that's SBC...but you get the point.
As for the argument that eight teams making a playoff will somehow "water down" the regular season: Ridiculous! If the top eight teams were put in a playoff, as my original suggested system would do, that bottom half and the four or so teams on the outside would be clawing like crazy to make the playoff. With a system like the one Wright suggested, not only would teams be fighting to win their conferences, they'd be fighting to be as highly ranked as possible. And when a really good team appears to have lost a shot to win their conference, instead of the "poor me, I lost my chance at playing for a title" we see every year, those teams will continue fighting because they would still have a shot. That almost triples the excitement IMO! Then add an eight team playoff at the end of all of that? Man, the last half of the college football season would be as exciting as it can possibly be (not an opinion, that's a fact!... imo)!
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