This is topic is talked about so often on ESPN, other sports programs on television, and sports radio, that I almost feel like I'm beating a dead horse. Regardless, I still want to share my opinion, and this is, after all, my blog. "What topic?", you ask. The NCAA Football Bowl Championship Series, and why it is a monumental failure in comparison to other NCAA sports, and generally any other sports' plan for finding a champion.
Throughout the NCAA Football year, the top 25 teams in the nation are ranked on a weekly basis by the Associated Press (AP). The rankings of each team depend on the strength of schedule (how strong a particular team's opponents are), how many wins and losses a team has, and how many points are scored in each game. I'm sure there are other mitigating factors, but those are the three main factors in determining a team's AP ranking. At the end of the season, "Bowl Games" are scheduled among the top teams in the nation, with the National Championship game being reserved between the #1 and #2 teams in the nation, the winner being crowned the champion, and generally regarded as the #1 team in the nation. This leaves room for much speculation, including the notion that "politics" play a rather large role in deciding if a particular team receives a favorable ranking. A prime example of this would be Boise State in NCAA Football. Boise State, on several different occasions, has finished their regular season undefeated. However, since they reside in a rather small conference, and do not typically play a large number strong opponents, they are regarded as a lesser program. This is no fault of Boise State's, as they are forced to play each team in their conference (every team in the NCAA belongs to a conference) a certain number of times each year, whether they like it or not. This would easily be solved if there were a playoff system, because they would either win against the other top teams in the nation, or they would lose and there would be nothing left to argue.
No other sport adopts this policy. Even if you aren't an avid sports fan, I'm sure you've heard of the term "playoffs". The term "playoffs" refers to a tournament at the end of the regular season, in which the top teams are generally seeded (given ranks based on their performance in the regular season), and those top teams play throughout the tournament, with the two teams left at the end playing each other for the championship. This provides a true measurement of what team truly is the best. If you lose, you go home. However, if you win, you continue in the tournament, and play the winner of a game between two other teams, and the tournament progresses until the two best teams are left.
It all boils down to money. The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) provides for a set number of bowl games each season. This allows for companies to bid against each other for the right to sponsor each "bowl game", creating millions of dollars in revenue for the BCS, and in return, the vendors who sponsor each "bowl game" receive countless hours of air-time on national television, and priceless advertising. The goal of the "suits" running the BCS is to make a profit, not determine the best team in the country. NCAA Football needs to change, and adopt the policy of a playoff tournament. This would not only negate the notion that what the people running this system truly care about is money, it would finally result in everyone actually knowing who the best team in the nation is because the teams would play it out on the field, not get voted into a ranking affected by the strong influence of "politics".
No comments:
Post a Comment