Since 2009, there have been major rumblings about a playoff being needed to truly crown a national champion. In the 2010 National championship game, in which we saw Alabama begin their impressive run with a win over the Texas Longhorns. Both teams were a perfect 13-0 going into the game, but they weren't the only undefeated teams in the country that season. The Cincinnati Bearcats, TCU Horned Frogs and Boise State Broncos were also undefeated and all ranked in the BCS top 6 at the end of the season with the 12-1 Florida Gators as the only other team in the top 6.
You also had the next year when Oregon and Auburn faced off in the National Championship with an undefeated TCU team on the outside looking in. Then there was the infamous 2011 season in which we saw Alabama play in the National Championship Game, despite not only not winning their conference, but not even winning their division when facing off against the only undefeated team in the nation that year, the SEC Champion LSU Tigers. The 2011 season I feel is what got the ball rolling on the playoff train with 3 one loss teams all with a legitimate case to make the national championship game in Oklahoma State, Stanford and Alabama. Rather than going with a new match up, the BCS decided to go with a rematch of one of the better games of the 2011 season in Alabama vs LSU as it's title game, much to the chagrin of many fans and writers. Then last season you had the undefeated Notre Dame Fighting Irish face off with the one loss Alabama Crimson Tide who got the title nod over one loss Oregon and Kansas State.
From 2009 to now you really could make an argument that a playoff could have significantly altered the college football landscape. How much differently would it be if BCS busters like Boise State and TCU were given the opportunity to play for a national championship? Would Alabama have became one of the most dominant dyansties in college football history? Now, I don't mean to get into hypotheticals but those are legitimate questions. The biggest knock on the aforementioned TCU and Boise State was that they didn't play in "power" conferences, but with the 4 team playoff I do think that TCU or Boise State would have at the very least PLAYED in one of the national championship games, if not potentially WINNING one.
Now I am not saying that a playoff will fix all the problems in the system though. For example, after the 2009 season we saw 5 undefeated teams in Alabama, Texas, Cincinnati, TCU and Boise State. With the new 4 team playoff system one team would still be left on the outside looking in. The polls, both computer and coaches, will still play a role in determining who does and doesn't get the opportunity to play for the national championship. But I feel that this new playoff system will do a lot to quiet any discussion of the "best" team not necessarily being the national champion, with the obligatory crazy fan conspiracy theories not withstanding of course. But I am interested, like I'm sure the rest of the college football world is, to see how this playoff plays out. Will this playoff change the 'power' conference mentality? Will the SEC still remain as dominant as they have been in recent years? Only time will tell.
- Josh Gamez
@itsjoshgamez
josh.projectcfb@gmail.com
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