By KEVIN MOBLEY – Guest Writer
Every single college football fan knows the Bowl Championship Series has become synonymous with unfairness, mistake and doubt in a dated system.
The Bowl Championship Series has faced much scrutiny and has been characterized by unfairness since its beginnings. Cartoon by William Kissane.
And then there’s the fact that Northern Illinois – yes, Northern Illinois – is in a BCS bowl.
The BCS, a committee of university presidents, athletic directors, and executive director Bill Hancock, describes its system as “designed to ensure that the top two-rated teams in the country meet in the national championship game.”
Nonetheless, since the national championship game was created in 2006, there is one fundamental problem that shows up. What if there are more than two teams that could make a case to be in the title game?
Take a look at this year’s situation. The system avoided criticism by working itself out, as the No. 1 and No. 2 teams leading into Nov. 17, Kansas State and Oregon, lost to teams ranked behind them. Kansas State even lost to unranked Baylor in blowout fashion, setting up a sneak peak of a playoff that college football fans have been waiting for.
Notre Dame beat Southern Cal on Nov. 24 taking the first spot, giving SEC champion Alabama the second spot.
The college football media has been waiting to exalt Notre Dame back to its throne, and SEC fans will be kept happy, as they can extend their six-year reign over college football. Perfect situation right?
Wrong.
Georgia, loser of the SEC Championship on Dec. 1, will not even make a BCS bowl, despite being ranked in the top three leading into the game against Alabama, as No. 3 Florida will slide into that spot in the Allstate Sugar Bowl. Though Georgia has had a relatively easy schedule, how could they be led into such a letdown?
Speaking of Florida, Gator fans will always wonder what could have been this season, despite winning four games against teams that are currently ranked in the top 15 of the BCS standings. The kicker: Florida’s only loss is to No. 3 Georgia, and now they can’t jump into the title game over Alabama.
With this outcome decided by the system, along with similar situations in 2007 with Georgia and Texas in ‘08, the BCS has picked against teams that are not conference champions.
Shouldn’t an entire season, filled with quality wins, speak more to the system than one game?
Guess not. However, change is coming.
The BCS said it would be transitioning to a playoff following the 2014 season. The deal was finalized on Nov. 12, putting the finishing touches on what fans have been waiting for: a proven champion. There are some kinks in this plan, as there are only four teams, and a BCS selection committee will choose them.
But this decision shows that the system is starting to catch up.
There can never be a completely uncontested champion in college football; the sport cannot replicate the 68-team NCAA tournament that basketball has. A four-team playoff makes sure that the regular season keeps its importance.
As Vince Lombardi once said, “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”
