Another year, another college football championship with an SEC team on top of the podium. I am not here to discuss the merits of SEC football because we all know they are good.
The problem lies in the fact that this year, there were two SEC teams in the four-team college football playoff, and they met in the national championship as well. Many fans felt that two SEC teams should not be in the national championship game, and people all over the country were upset.
Not many people know this, but the college football playoff was created to avoid this exact situation, after Alabama played Louisiana State University for the BCS National Championship in 2012. As it turns out, this four-team playoff has done absolutely nothing to make the situation better and has in fact made things worse.
The prevailing idea in college football is that the best teams get to play in the biggest bowl games. This usually is not a problem, even when some of the best teams come from the SEC. The problem begins with the fact that only four teams are allowed in the playoff when there are many more teams that should be in the playoffs.
This past year, the Big 10 conference was snubbed. The champion, Ohio State, was left out because they had lost two games to Alabama’s one. The runner up, Wisconsin, was also left out due to their weak schedule.
The Pac 12 was also left out with their champion, University of Southern California, having lost three games. The biggest travesty of the selection committee was the clear disrespect to Central Florida, who went undefeated while not being in a power-five conference.
The college football playoff is not a playoff unless all of the able teams are allowed to participate. Ohio State, Wisconsin, Central Florida, Texas Christian University and USC all should have been strongly considered for the playoffs, but they were all overlooked for the fan-favorites of the SEC, Alabama and UGA.
Ideally, the playoff should include eight teams. This way, each of the power five conferences would be allowed to send their champions. This also allows the inclusion of three at-large teams, which would Include Central Florida, Wisconsin, and another SEC team.
With this system, the playoff would be more inclusive, and the country would be allowed to see a true champion, as opposed to an SEC matchup that no one wants to see. The current college football playoff system is broken, and there are ways to fix it. The NCAA just needs to recognize that fact and get on with it already before they lose even more fans to the snoozefest that is yet another SEC matchup.
Opinion: The college football system is a broken system
