By: Carter Williams
On Monday, Jan. 9, the LSU and Alabama football teams faced off in the BCS national championship. The Crimson tide and their lock-down defense blanked the LSU offense, winning 21-0. The game was a rematch of early this season on Nov. 15, when LSU won 9-6 in a field goal contest, as all the points were scored by the kickers. Alabama missed 2 field goals and had one blocked. Either way, the BCS is a corrupt system that needs reform.
Of course no one can say that either of the teams would have been in the game if the NCAA would have a playoff for the national championship. Imagine if the NFL would jump straight to the Super Bowl instead of having a playoff. In the last 10 Super Bowls, three number-one seeds won the game, and not once was it a game between the two number-one seeds. Point being, deciding the championship game prior to a playoff makes the game illegitimate, and in years like this one in college football, no one can say that Alabama is truly the best team in the country.
Teams like Oklahoma State, Stanford, Oregon, and even lower ranked schools like Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, and Arkansas, who were not as good at Alabama or LSU in the regular season, might have made a playoff run if given the chance. Look at Butler and Virginia Commons last season in college basketball or the Packers last year, who won the Super Bowl after barely making it into the playoffs.
The idea of bowl games isn’t bad at all because of the fact that there are 124 teams, and recruiting isn’t going to be equally distributed. It will be centuries before Troy or Florida International can compete with the powerhouses of the SEC. There are 32 bowls and 32 champions, which is nice for the student athletes who compete. If they have a good season, they are awarded a post season.
Solution:
The BCS now is four Bowl games; Rose, Orange, Sugar, and Fiesta, and then the BCS National championship. The BCS needs to make a 16 team playoff, using the top 16 teams from the AP Top 25 averaged together with the BCS computers. Break the BCS into four brackets and make the Rose, Orange, Sugar, and Fiesta. Instead of the four being Bowl games, they become brackets. Have the teams play just like a regular playoff bracket like college basketball. If the number one seed is truly number one, then they should be able to breeze through the playoff. Then, keep the rest of the bowls for the smaller, less talented teams, who still put in the work and deserve a post season.