Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t the theory behind competitive sports that the top teams are tested until a true winner remains?
In every other sport but college football, the top teams are separated from the rest of the teams, pitted against each other in a tournament arrangement, and the winner rises to the top.
But in college football, only two teams face off for the national championship. The rest of the contenders in the nation go to other bowl games, where they can finish the season with a win.
To me, this seems kind of sissy.
A national college football tournament would decide the national championship by pitting the top teams in the country against each other in a five week frenzy. Only the real champion would survive the test. And the champion would be absolute — no controversy, no question about rankings or the Bowl Championship Series.
In the current situation, college football teams complete their regular season, sit for three to four weeks, then possibly play a bowl game that may or may not mean anything toward a national championship.
The nation’s champion used to be decided by whoever was ranked first in the Associated Press polls. The BCS — a combination of many polls — put this to an end.
Meanwhile, fans are left to watch “It’s a Wonderful Life” and non-conference college basketball.
What should we do with this lull in football action? Add a championship tournament.
Here’s the Robbie McCallum plan: A five week, 32-team bracket that begins at the end of the college season in late November. Five rounds follow, eventually leading to a final four, which would be played in a rotation of bowls (Orange, Sugar, Fiesta, Rose and Cotton). The national championship game would be played Jan. 1.
The 11 conference champions would receive automatic bids, an additional 21 teams would be given at-large bids based on overall season records and top-25 rankings. The tournament would probably include every top-25 team, plus the patsy teams from low-caliber conferences such as the Big West.
Although it sounds foreign to college football, it is the answer to all the problems associated with the Bowl Championship Series.
Imagine the excitement that a college football tournament could bring: office pool brackets, five weeks of playoff atmosphere football, bubble teams and Cinderella teams. It would be everything that March Madness is, only on the gridiron.
In 1995, both Nebraska and Penn State finished the regular season with undefeated records. The Cornhuskers received the national champion title based on the ever-important AP poll. Under the McCallum plan, Nebraska and Penn State would have possibly faced each other in the title game.
Traditions can be hard to break, but it’s time for college football to get with the program and find a way to crown the true champion.