This year’s division I-A college football regular season provided plenty of fodder for the playoff grist mill. As expected, the media is having a field day…but that is not what I am after.
The rest of NCAA football has a playoff system (division 1-AA and divisions II and III) that gets mentioned quite a bit when talking about logistics for a potential playoff system to replace the BCS. What I am wondering is what coaches that have worked in both systems (playoff and BCS) have had to say on the merits of both systems.
Googling returns a bunch of the usual rants from fans raving against the BCS. I would like to hear from the guys on the field who have seen things both ways.
Division I coaches are almost unanimously against a playoff, EXCEPT in years when the current system works to their disadvantage. THIS year, Tommy Tuberville is furious that Auburn has no chance at the national championship, so he rails against the bowl system and wants a playoff. But in most other seasons, he’ll be delighted with the current system.
Understand that in Divison II football (or division I basketball), only one coach gets to end his season on a high note. Everyone else is perceived as a failure. With the bowl system, 28 teams get a chance to end the season on a high note, which can mean another season of job security for a coach.
A playoff would provide a huige benefit for one school. But to the coach of a 6-5 team, a trip to the Pomegranate Bowl or the Yam Bowl might be just the ticket toward saving his job! Since MOST coaches are in the 6-5 range, at best, small wonder most coaches like the bowl system!
I should point out that at least one legendary coach–Joe Paterno–has always been in favor of a playoff, even after Penn State’s 1982 championship (which he might not have won under a playoff system). JoePa readily admitted that he would have rather won the title on the field than in the “voting booth”:
A bit of a hijack here, but I don’t think college coaches are totally free to speak their minds on the viability of a playoff. After all, university presidents comprise one of the most influential groups mitigating against I-A playoffs. Who signs the head coach’s paycheck?
Doesn’t work this year. You can still have four undefeated teams after the Bowl Games are all played, who can all hypothetical lay claim to being best in the land. Plus if SC loses a nailbiter to Oklahoma, those teams could theoretically still end up 1-2 (especially if all the other undefeateds lost their bowl games), in which case you’d just have a replay of the Orange Bowl.
I’d love to see Cal play Texas. I’d love to see a playoff. What I’ve heard is the biggest barrier to a playoff is the money. If someone can guarantee the same money, to the teams and the sponsors, there would be a playoff. One would think that the TV revenue which could be generated from an NCAA Div 1A playoff system versus a bunch of mediocre bowl games would be much better, but someone with vision needs to put together a big package.