How would you do a playoff system for College Football?

Question

How many teams would get in. How many games would they have to play? Where would the games be played?

Answer 1

Lets not re-invent the wheel here folks. Using the current system(BCS), take the top 16 teams. Seeding by BCS rank, use the current bowls as play-off sites. There might have to be a slight adjustment on the dates, but it's worth it. I don't believe you could reasonably have any less than 16 teams as most conferences have more than 1 quality team. The BCS is not bad, we just don't use it right.

Answer 2

There are actually 11 conferences.

ACC
Big East
Big Ten
Big 12
Conference USA
Mid American
Mountain West
Pac 10
SEC
Sun Belt
WAC

11 conference champs...5 at-large bids. I'd start the season the last weekend in August. 12-game seasons, no bye weeks, no playing 1-AA teams. If teams have conference championship games, play them the final weekend of November and then start the playoffs the first weekend in December.

For the first round, I'd allow the teams to have home-field advantage depending on seeding. When we've pared down from 16 to 8, I'd use the bowl sites for those remaining games. 7 bowl games...and rotate them so that they will each have the chance to host the national title game. The other games I'd do away with, we have way too many bowl games anyway.

The championship game can be played the first weekend in January...maybe that Monday after the weekend.

Answer 3

First of all get rid of the Conference championship game. It will be useless in determining a playoff slot, because it actually penalizes those conferences by making them play one more game. Second, no polls until week 6 of the season. Having a poll before the season even starts is ridiculous. Weekly polls from week 6 until the end of the season. Then have the top 16 play, higher seed gets the home field advantage. The next round could be played at bowl sites around the country, with the major bowls (Rose, Fiesta, etc) hosting the quarter and semi finals. The final game would be played on a neutral site similar to the Super Bowl.

Answer 4

16 teams, champions of 8 conferences (ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big XII, CUSA, MWC, Pac Ten, SEC) and next 8 best teams using a ranking system that does NOT include human polls and has a massive strength-of-schedule component. Use the ranking system to rank all teams 1-16. Top eight seeds host bottom eight seeds in the first round (teams' seeds can be moved up or down 1 to avoid having teams in the same conference playing each other before the semifinals). No reseeding after each round. Quarterfinals at bowl sites (Gator, Peach, Cotton, and one of the Big Four). Semifinals at two of the other Big Four sites, final at the fourth. Big Four games rotate so that one hosts final every four years.

Answer 5

I think if you take the top 12 teams , then pick 4 locations East Coast , West Coast , North and South , play the games then of the winners have a location like the Rose Bowl or Orange Bowl or any High Profile stadium play the remaining two games and then you have it your National Champion !

Answer 6

I think the voting should be replaced solely by record. Take the previous year's record from the year before to start and build on it, game by game. After divisional bowls based on team record there should be a playoff series and then one final winner. It would make more sense especially now with the rise of Schools like Boise State. The truth is no matter what is done it will always be controversial, and not everyone will be happy with it.

Answer 7

Take the top 16 teams, put em in a playoff style bracket, and the next 16 teams would play for a JV type Championchip

Answer 8

all 9 conference champs plus 7 wildcards based on national rankings giving you 16. 4 rounds of playoffs, 1st two rounds played at high seed's home stadiums. final four and championship held at rotating neutral sites like the bcs does now, one for each game.