Easy Tig. Don't hurt yourself.
j/k
Why would a playoff system not have huge $$$ associated?
How much $$ did Fox give the NCAA to televise the bowl games?
How many of the major bowls had empty seats? (Zero)
Don't know but there are three games in a four team playoff format (maybe four if you do a third place game) and 7 or 8 in an eight team format. Plenty of money for everyone. Title game gets passed around between the usual suspects and all is well. First round takes care of tier two bowls and the tier three bowls can still hold their games. The teams playing in those don't have a shot at the title anyway.
The "welfare of the students" argument doesn't wash here either. These guys are practicing for over month for the big game already. How does it hurt if there are a couple of extra games in the mix and then only for the teams which progress?
So, at present you've got a dumbass network willing to fork over major $$$ to the NCAA to present the currently flawed system to the public, and people continue to sell out the games, and the ratings justify the $$$ Fox is forking over.
So, as long as the status quo makes everyone rich, then what motivation do they have to change this?
The money remains and the image is improved. Why wouldn't they want to change it? Simply and exclusively because the BCS conferences want to maximize their chances for the title. They don't want Utah or Boise State reducing their odds.
If you want to complain to anyone, why not get in touch with the dip*feces*s at Fox and ask them why they ponied up the $$$ to televise a flawed system. And the next time you see a column by some
journalist complaining about the BCS system, just write him an e-mail telling him it's his own fault, because his industry continues to support the flaw.
I don't want to invest that much effort as it doesn't pay the bills or count as time spent with the kids. The system is clearly flawed and two of the past three years have laid that wide open for everyone, even the BCS conference committees, to clearly see.
So ultimately you and everyone else can bitch, whine and moan about all this, but in the end nothing will change because everyone in control is getting paid....VERY WELL.
I disagree. It WILL change and everyone in control will STILL get paid very well. No more than five more seasons I believe.
One more thing. The media loves the controversy the BCS brings in. It gives ESPN countless hours of air time for talking
types like Mark May to wax poetic about how bad the BCS is and how much it needs to be done away with. Without the BCS they'd need to figure out another way to fill 80 hours a week of programming.
By the way - I totally agree with your argument that a playoff would multiply everyone's pockets - probably 100 fold. I just think that the jackass college presidents don't care because they can control the system as they see fit. You open this thing up to a playoff and they might have to admit that a school like Boise State that goes 13-0 deserves a shot at the title. But consider that the President of Duke has no incentive to change the system, because he knows his team will never be included in any argument where the words "championship" and "football team" are spoken in the same sentence.