IMO we need 10 conference games, one cupcake to get the season started and one tough power 5 conference team before starting the big 10 schedule, if teams would schedule tougher games I’d be willing to play 8 but they’ll schedule cupcakes and these cupcake games ain’t all that fun to watch unless it starts the season off, I’d rather play Purdue instead of Ga State just for an example because the game means something, playing these gimme games don’t mean squat, I’m for one cupcake but that’s it, I’d give 2 gimme games( IF) we play 2 tough power 5 teams and yes I would consider Pitt a respectable power 5 team, I’m not saying play Alabama and USC in the same year even though that would we fun just play teams that have a shot at beating you?
I'm okay with 9 conference games. Ten would be excessive and unsustainable. I've heard Glen Mason say Woody Hayes complained when they went to 8 conference games that it was a coach killer. Glen said he could only imagine what Woody would say about 9 especially with the restriction of no 1-AA teams on the nonconference schedule. What do you think Woody would say about 10?
"Cupcakes" need to support their athletics programs also. Every Power 5 program pays these schools to play in their house, usually near the beginning of the season. I'm sure that some of the money is used for scholarships and tuition for student athletes. Occasionally, you get a major upset such as App State over Michigan (which was fun) or Toledo over Penn State (which was not fun).
IMO it's easy to curtail the scheduling of cupcake games for all 4 OOC games with 8 conference games. Each Power 5 Conference (ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac 12) could make a few rules to standardize their scheduling...
Rule 1: No FCS teams. The FCS can sustain their own programs, FBS teams don't need to play them. The Big Ten already passed this rule, and I believe 1 or 2 other conferences did as well.
Rule 2: All schools must schedule 2 games vs. teams from the other Power 5 conferences and/or ND. Exceptions can be given if a school has shown a reasonable effort to schedule a 2nd P5 game and couldn't.
I don't think this is unreasonable, and would lead to a lot of nice games being played between the conferences. Of course I'm sure many of the higher teams in one conference would try to play the basement teams in the other conferences, but even still those would be monumentally better than playing Sun Belt and MAC schools every week. Conference pride!
13 teams per conference, 12 conference games, then you have a true champion. Conference championship games don't mean squat (see the last 2 years.) But money talks unfortunately.
Could you imagine the outcry if the SEC champ got left out. You are exactly right the conference championship games are useless especially if you play in the big 10. The whole NCAA college football playoffs is a scam!
I'd hate that, because then you would have crap teams being rewarded for playing crap schools while other conferences with real challenges get left behind. I'm sorry, but the MAC and Sun Belt do not belong in a playoff unless the play someone real good OOC.
Southern, there is no SEC Champion yet that should have been left out. Period.
Alabama deserved to be there in 2014/15/16, and so did Georgia in 2017. Ohio State did not have a resume better than Georgia last year, and Penn State did not have a resume better than Alabama in 2016.
Not once has the SEC Champion been a controversial pick. Never. The simple reason a Big Ten champion didn't go to the playoff two years in a row is this: Both lost twice, and both were boat raced in one of the games.
If you are going to complain about anything, it should be that the Big Ten sent OSU instead of PSU in 2016. Alabama getting picked over OSU last year is how it should be, a team losing by 31 points to an unranked team has no business in the playoff. At least in 2016 our blowout was to someone in the top 10, plus we beat the team they sent in our place.
Alas, with 5 Power conferences this will always happen. It's not a scam, it's just not a well thought out system. Moving it to 8 would solidify everything. All 5 power conference champs get in. One of the Group of 5 conference champs get in. After that, 2 wild card teams are taken. That is the best way to do this by far. At the very worst, the #4 team in the nation is left out because #2 & #3 both didn't win their conference. Very doubtful that would even happen. Even then, you could simply say "you had a chance to win your conference and didn't"
The big 10 champ being left out of the playoffs is a joke. Personally I think Clemson was the weakest team and if you remember I said they should’ve been left out and if you also remember I told everybody on PennLive that Alabama would destroy them and they did. To be honest I don’t know if any of the playoff teams last year could’ve beat Ohio st or penn st. I also said we got screwed when Ohio st got in over us 2 years ago when we beat them the 7th game of the season and we won the big 10. If you win the big 10 and you play in the east there’s a great chance you’re the best team in the conference and are most likely a top 3 team but I don’t guess the playoff scam committee can’t connect the dots. This ain’t complicated to figure out....just take the conference champs and that way nobody can complain about anything.
Clemson earned it by winning their conference and only losing once.
It would have been an absolute joke to not take a team that was 12-1, who was the reigning National Champion and the current ACC Champion for Ohio State. An absolute JOKE.
Ohio State was boat raced by Clemson the year before, lost twice, and was boat raced by Iowa in NOVEMBER.
I usually like Clemson but they took a step back last year and they lost to Syracuse, no way they beat Ohio st or penn st last year. The ACC and SEC was average at best last year, I’ve never seen the SEC that bad, it was crap. I really don’t know how good Alabama or Georgia was because they beat up on so many bad teams. No way the SEC should’ve got 2 teams in. I don’t think the games were fixed but I do believe who the committee wants in is fixed or they would come up with a fair playoff where opinions don’t matter, it’s who wins their conference just like the NFL winning their division, it’s easy to do Roam.
"No way they beat Ohio State"
Iowa beat Ohio State by 31 points late in the year, your statement is devoid of any proof. Meanwhile Clemson have beaten Ohio State badly the last few times they played, and Clemson didn't get hammered by 31 points by an unranked team.
Clemson's only loss was a close game to Syracuse, when their starting QB was injured. I'm sorry, but if the committee had left out Clemson in favor of Ohio State the entire country would have gone crazy. Ohio State did not belong in the top 3, PERIOD. They had a case for #4, with Alabama. Even then though, Bama had 1 loss to a rival. A team ranked #6. OSU had two losses, one at home to Oklahoma and another to Iowa.
Somehow every time another team loses to Oklahoma, it means they are bad because as you say... "Choklahoma". But Ohio State loses at home to Oklahoma, and suddenly OSU "got better" through the year? Not to mention they lost in November to Iowa. By 31. How does a team that got better at the end of the year, lose by 31 to an unranked team towards the end of the year?????
Like Auburn, Iowa is a tough place to play. Opinions need to be taken out of who plays for the NC because everybody has an opinion, it should be decided on the field. Last year was the biggest bunch of crap I’ve ever seen.
The last time that I looked 9 Power 5 conference games equals 9 games against Power 5 teams, add one more Power 5 nonconference game and you've got 10. But maybe my math is off?
