The CF"p"

[Cobra Mgr]

The College Football "playoff" might put me in the unenviable position of pulling for Bama. I pull against the traditional powers every year. Bama, OhSt, Clemson, UGa, LSU, Irish. Cause 1) I don't feel this is the way a champion is decided. Thus the "p". 2) I think the system is rigged towards the football factories and keeps any other program from having their day in the sun. 3)I never like the same teams winning unless I was pulling for that school long before they became dominant.

W/that feeling, I always pull against the above. But my highest priority is chaos. Chaos exposes the fraud that the system is. The system's proponents say everything has wound up working out in the end. I dispute that. To me, it is every bit the "beauty contest" it has been from the get go. No championship is really earned. It is still all about who can get the E.German judge to ignore political pressure and give the other guy an extra tenth of a point.

This year I think there is a real chance for chaos. This centers around the SEC & TCU. The Horned Frogs certainly have no automatics on their schedule, but they've gone thru the meat of their opponents unscathed. Back-to-back road games vs Texas & Baylor won't be easy. But TCU should be favored. Win the 12ish & they are unbeaten. The pundits say if they do their part, they won't have to worry about making the Final 4. I say not so fast.

What if UGa beats Tenn this weekend, and remains unbeaten til they face Bama in the SEC title game? And the Tide run the table? You now have 3 top 5 SEC teams w/1 loss. If Clemson remains unbeaten & OhSt/Mich winner is unbeaten, you now have 4 teams vying for the final 2 selections. How do you take Bama over Tenn when the Vols beat them? How do you leave UGa out when they won the SEC East & beat Tenn? How do you leave out Bama when they are the SEC Champs & beat the defending national champs? And with all that, do we think the committee is going to put in TCU over 2 of those 3? And a one loss Big T1e4n team?

Chaos. I think I'm in the unenviable position of pulling for Bama.

[pilight]

TCU has played a tougher schedule than Ohio State, much tougher than Michigan. The committee loves the B10 regardless of what cupcakes they play.

[Cobra Mgr]

Originally Posted by pilight

TCU has played a tougher schedule than Ohio State, much tougher than Michigan. The committee loves the B10 regardless of what cupcakes they play.

They favor the T1e4n & the SEC.

We could also have a 1 loss Pac12 champ getting passed over for an SEC/T1e4n runner-up.

[Cobra Mgr]

As expected, too many variables prevent the chaos I want. Clemson's "performance" in S.Bend kicked the ACC out of contention. Irish can't beat Marshall. Can't beat the cellar team in the Pac12. But no problem vs anyone in the ACC. EmbarACCing.........

.......Bama should, SHOULD, be eliminated in the "playoff" discussion. LSU needs to take care of biz vs the R'backs. Or else, I can see the committee sneaking the Tide in if they manage to back into the SEC title game & win. Either way, if LSU or Bama were to win the SEC title game, would the committee dare put in a 2 loss but SEC conference winner in?...........

.......TCU now has a clear path. Win out & I don't see even this evil cartel locking them out. A trip to enigmatic Texas this week is the last serious hurdle, IMO. .....

.....OSU & Mich has a little less worry that a loss in their regular season final will eliminate them. Especially if the game is close. But they would still have to sweat it out vs a one loss Pac12 champ & Tennessee.......

....Speaking of the Pac12.....They have quietly creeped into the picture. Even if Oregon won the conference, that season opener vs Georgia might still hurt. USC is in a better spot w/a 1 point loss on the road @ UTah the only blemish. And games vs ranked UCLA & ND on the horizon. If they run the table they will have the best resume of any one loss team. UCLA still has an outside shot if they keep their losses @ one.

[Cobra Mgr]

So as of now, looks like Georgia & Michigan are in, even with an upset Saturday. TCU & USC are in if they win. TCU would be the 3rd unbeaten. While USC would have beaten every team they played if they win vs Utah Friday. Those are the best remaining resumes.

If TCU or USC falter Ohio St still has a shot. Tennessee has the next best chance despite losing Hooker. Despite Saban's pleas, Bama should have zero shot. Same record as the Vols w/an L to them. Plus, the Vols beat the other school that handed the Tide their 2nd loss.

[Amazin69]

Prediction: the Committee picks Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State and Notre Dame. Just because.

(Okay, the Notre Dame bit is a joke. Although they always seemed to get a BCS bowl nod even if they went 7-4, back in the day.)

Actual picks: Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Alabama. Don't tell me they wouldn't do it. 'Bama was #7 heading into this week and #5 LSU lost. So the committee will probably leapfrog the Tide over USC for that slot, and then they'll invoke a "Horned Frogs? C'mon man!" clause or something and give Alabama the fourth slot, anyhow. They already have analyst shills pushing the "both losses were on the last play to good teams on the road" narrative. Which is ridiculous, but still.

[Ty Cobb]

Jawja, Michigan!, TCU, and...who cares, they won't win.

Michigan is my home squad, but have a terrible soft spot for TCU. Many fond memories of watching Earl Campbell destroy them back in the 70's. They were almost as hapless as Northwestern, and it would be great to see fresh blood win.

[thehef]

Originally Posted by Cobra Mgr

The College Football "playoff" might put me in the unenviable position of pulling for Bama. I pull against the traditional powers every year. Bama, OhSt, Clemson, UGa, LSU, Irish.

As an ND fan, I wonder: How far do we have to go back to consider the Irish a power? Sure, Brian Kelly finished with a solid four or five year run of very few losses per year, but his ND tenure wasn't absent a truly big win over a tip-top team (save for a home OT win over a Clemson team that w/o Trevor Lawrence). And it looks like he has passed that torch to his pathetic successor...

There are maybe a handful of nearly annually elite teams, but ND is not one of them. They do not belong in any conversation that involves Alabama, Clemson, UGa, Ohio $t... Rather, they are among the next handful-to-dozen teams that are usually pretty good, but never really a contender.

[GeoWar]

Georgia -- in

The others need t WIN or it will be a mess

They talk 8 or 12 teams ...... It would be like MLB

[pilight]

College football, really all college sports, would be better if they adopted a promotion/relegation system

[monkeyman576]

Originally Posted by pilight

College football, really all college sports, would be better if they adopted a promotion/relegation system

Except that goes against the "keep the rich richer" attitude.

[thehef]

Let in all ~130 teams. Run it March Madness style, starting in early/mid-Dec, 7 or 8 weeks long, culminating in the championship game played on either the Saturday before or the Monday night after the Super Bowl.

To make the brackets work, give Big Five conf champs a bye, and/or eliminate any 0 or 1 win teams, and/or let the Browns/Lions/Jets in.

[monkeyman576]

Just to see what happens, via the website whatifsports.com

First Four(worst 4 teams randomly inserted into 128 team bracket) U=Upset
Arkansas State vs. UConn>>>UConn 43-30
UNLV vs. UMass>>>UNLV 35-22

1st Round(random no seeding or reseeding)
Stanford vs. Air Force>>>STN 41-38(OT)
Nevada vs. Liberty>>>NEV 31-24
LSU vs. UTSA>>>UTS 18-17
TCU vs. UNLV>>>UNL 47-41
Northwestern vs. Ole Miss>>>MIS 33-7
Alabama vs. NC State>>>ALA 33-24
Rice vs. Arizona St>>>RIC 21-16(U)
Western Michigan vs. Ohio St.>>>OSU 66-24
Michigan St vs. Boise St>>>MSU 41-13
Tennessee vs. North Carolina>>>NCU 26-23
Georgia Tech vs. Charlotte>>>GTU 25-22
UTEP vs. Cincinatti>>>CIN 55-27
Auburn vs. Mid Tennessee>>>AUB 44-14
S Florida vs. Oklahoma St>>>OSU 27-10
Virginia Tech vs. Louisville>>>LOU 40-13
UCF Vs. Louisiana Tech>>>LTU 34-16(U)
Texas St. vs. Army>>>ARM 33-6
California vs. San Jose St>>>SJS 23-15
Florida Atl. vs. Indiana>>>IND 38-17
Iowa St. vs. Maryland>>>ISU 30-27
Georgia St. vs. Colorado>>>GSU 19-0(U)
Nebraska vs. Georgia>>>GEO 38-30
Washington vs. Oregon St>>>34-24(U)
Kansas vs. Oklahoma>>>OKL 34-10
Illinois vs. Louisiana>>>ILL 30-20
E Carolina vs. Utah>>>UTA 56-28
Troy vs. Kentucky>>>TRY 46-29
Utah St. vs. Coastal Carolina>>>CCU 35-23
Fresno St vs. Boston College>>>BCU 30-24
Tulsa vs. N Illinois>>>TUL 20-17
W Kentucky vs. Florida St>>>WKU 38-17(U)
Ohio vs. San Diego St>>>UOH(U) 24-7
S Carolina vs. Arizona>>>SCU 51-6
New Mexico vs. Buffalo>>>BUF 24-17
Tulane vs. Purdue>>>PUR 34-32
Missouri vs. Colorado St>>>MIS 34-20
USC vs. Texas A&M>>>TAM 28-27
Marshall vs. Old Dominion>>>MAR 58-31
Vanderbilt vs. C Michigan>>>CMU 38-13
Texas vs. Rutgers>>>TEX 31-17
Hawaii vs. SMU>>>HAW 22-19(U)
Georgia Southern vs. Clemson>>>CLE 20-17
Duke vs. Pittsburgh>>>PIT 27-24
Arkansas St vs. Penn St>>>PSU 30-0
Miami(FL) vs. FIU>>>Miami(FL) 41-10
BYU vs. Memphis>>>BYU 44-12
Temple vs. Florida>>>FLA 53-7
New Mexico St vs. N Texas>>>NMS 32-10(U)
Bowling Green vs. Notre Dame>>>NDU 31-17
Texas vs. E Michigan>>>E Michigan 41-38
Akron vs. Ball St>>>AKR 38-24(U)
Appalachian St vs. Miami(OH)>>>APP 51-16
Toledo vs. W Virginia>>>TOL 31-19
Minnesota vs. Kansas St>>>KSU 30-10
Wyoming vs. Wisconsin>>>WIS 58-27
Michigan vs. UAB>>>MIC 55-10
Oregon vs. Kent St>>>KSU 28-20(U)
Navy vs. Baylor>>>BAY 24-19
Virginia vs. Washington St>>>VIR 36-31
Louisiana Monroe vs. Syracuse>>>SYR 36-21
Wake Forest vs. Houston>>>WFU 21-16
S Alabama vs. Iowa>>>IOW 24-17(OT)
Southern Miss vs. Arkansas>>>ARK 48-17

2nd Round
Stanford vs. Nevada>>>STN 39-36(OT)
UTSA vs. UNLV>>>UTS 33-20
Ole Miss vs. Alabama>>>MU 33-7(U)
Rice vs. Ohio St.>>>OSU 44-34
Michigan St. vs. North Carolina>>>NCU 35-19(U)
Georgia Tech vs. Cincinnati>>CIN 27-10
Auburn vs. Oklahoma St.>>>AUB 24-6(U)
Louisville vs. Louisiana Tech>>>LOU 41-14
Army vs. San Jose St>>>ARM 41-27
Indiana vs. Georgia St.>>>GSU 37-14
Georgia vs. Washington
Oklahoma vs. Illinois
Utah vs. Troy
Coastal Carolina vs. Boston College
Tulsa vs. W Kentucky
Ohio vs. South Carolina
Buffalo vs. Purdue
Missouri vs. Texas A&M
Marshall vs. C Michigan
Texas vs. Hawaii
Clemson vs. Pittsburgh
Penn St vs. Miami(FL)
BYU vs. Florida
New Mexico St. vs. Notre Dame
E Michigan vs. Akron
Appalachian St vs. Toledo
Kansas St. vs. Wisconsin
Michigan vs. Kent St.
Baylor vs. Virginia
Syracuse vs. Wake Forest
Iowa vs. Arkansas

[pilight]

Originally Posted by monkeyman576

Except that goes against the "keep the rich richer" attitude.

Yeah, because that never happens in those soccer leagues that use promotion/relegation systems

[Cobra Mgr]

Originally Posted by Amazin69

Prediction: the Committee picks Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State and Notre Dame. Just because.

(Okay, the Notre Dame bit is a joke. Although they always seemed to get a BCS bowl nod even if they went 7-4, back in the day.)

Actual picks: Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Alabama. Don't tell me they wouldn't do it. 'Bama was #7 heading into this week and #5 LSU lost. So the committee will probably leapfrog the Tide over USC for that slot, and then they'll invoke a "Horned Frogs? C'mon man!" clause or something and give Alabama the fourth slot, anyhow. They already have analyst shills pushing the "both losses were on the last play to good teams on the road" narrative. Which is ridiculous, but still.

Bama can't get in over Tenn. They might over OSU. But then there would be absolute fury over 3 SEC teams in the final 4. It would cause a break in the CF"p" if they did that.

[Cobra Mgr]

Originally Posted by thehef

As an ND fan, I wonder: How far do we have to go back to consider the Irish a power? Sure, Brian Kelly finished with a solid four or five year run of very few losses per year, but his ND tenure wasn't absent a truly big win over a tip-top team (save for a home OT win over a Clemson team that w/o Trevor Lawrence). And it looks like he has passed that torch to his pathetic successor...

There are maybe a handful of nearly annually elite teams, but ND is not one of them. They do not belong in any conversation that involves Alabama, Clemson, UGa, Ohio $t... Rather, they are among the next handful-to-dozen teams that are usually pretty good, but never really a contender.

Irish is a power. Keep in mind TV runs this. The Irish are always relevant. The networks jump at the chance to include ND.

[thehef]

Originally Posted by Cobra Mgr

Irish is a power. Keep in mind TV runs this. The Irish are always relevant. The networks jump at the chance to include ND.

Relevant & a power from a TV perspective, sure. But a power on the field? Not close to the degree of Bama, O$U, UGa, Clemson. Yes, a power on the field if it's defined to include a bunch of other teams that are typically a threat to - ho hum - make the top 25 rankings.

[TheMaus2]

OSU/Bama only have a shot if someone loses a conference championship game, & I remain confident in the current 4 champions until shown otherwise.

[thehef]

Originally Posted by TheMaus2

OSU/Bama only have a shot if someone loses a conference championship game, & I remain confident in the current 4 champions until shown otherwise.

IMO, the three undefeateds (UGa, Mich, TCU) should get in even if they lose their conf title games (but don't get blown out). Those lower-ranked teams (O$U, Nick Satan's franchise, etc.) shouldn't benefit by failing to earn a spot in a conf title game...

Now, if USC loses it's title game, that would rightly open the 4th spot up to others, though I wouldn't discount USC... In that scenario - assuming USC's loss is close that Clemson wins the ACC - I think I'd rank teams in this order for the 4th playoff spot:

Clemson
Bama
USC
O$U

[Cobra Mgr]

Originally Posted by thehef

Relevant & a power from a TV perspective, sure. But a power on the field? Not close to the degree of Bama, O$U, UGa, Clemson. Yes, a power on the field if it's defined to include a bunch of other teams that are typically a threat to - ho hum - make the top 25 rankings.

It's all perspective. 11 teams have made the CF"p" in its history. Irish made it twice. Same as Georgia. Same as the Pac-14. If you want to view them as pwr or not, free country.