NCAA College Football Playoffs

[Mark2024]

They should put all these data such as who played who and what are the scores into ChatGPT to ask for a answer.

 

[Texas Proud]

They seem to vary what they emphasize. Texas won their conference championship, yes. They beat a team that lost to South Alabama.

No playoff team had an easier opponent than Texas. And Texas also has the worst loss. They had the 2nd best win but it came very early, when Alabama had not settled on a QB.

Georgia did not win their championship but they faced arguably the toughest opponent. Who they faced matters more than win or lose in my opinion.

If it is 4 best teams, Ga should be in.

If it is undefeated conference championship winners, FSU should be in.

Ahhhh, Alabama had the worst loss of 10 points to TEXAS... so going head to head Texas should be in over Alabama even though they beat Georgia...


Still going head to head Alabama should be in as they beat Georgia...


I do agree that Georgia probably is the best team in college today... I will be interested to see the score of Georgia vs Florida St... I predict a blowout...

 

[Montecfo]

Ahhhh, Alabama had the worst loss of 10 points to TEXAS... so going head to head Texas should be in over Alabama even though they beat Georgia...


Still going head to head Alabama should be in as they beat Georgia...


I do agree that Georgia probably is the best team in college today... I will be interested to see the score of Georgia vs Florida St... I predict a blowout...

It's not really an argument. But by "bad loss" I meant to least competitive team. That distinction goes to Texas.

Just making the point that it is far from obvious Texas should be in. You have to first choose which criterion to elevate.

I agree that Ga should beat FSU easily. BUT, so much comes into play. Is Georgia demoralized after dream shattered. Is FSU playing with a chip. Who will play and who will opt out.

Bowls have become a crapshoot.

 

[Dawg52]

I look forward to the 12 team playoff system next year. That will keep more schools involved in meaningful post season games. All the other bowl games just don't generate much interest anymore. The Alamo bowl this year with Arizona and OU could be a good one but OU's QB is transferring so he won't play. That's one thing that chaps me about today's game. You never heard of players sitting out bowl games 10 years ago or so. Now due to the NIL/portal and players getting ready for the NFL many star players don't play in the lower tier bowls. Understandable as they don't want to get hurt in a meaningless bowl game screwing up their draft pick or losing out on a good transfer deal. The game has changed a lot over the last several years.

 

[Texas Proud]

It's not really an argument. But by "bad loss" I meant to least competitive team. That distinction goes to Texas.

Just making the point that it is far from obvious Texas should be in. You have to first choose which criterion to elevate.

I agree that Ga should beat FSU easily. BUT, so much comes into play. Is Georgia demoralized after dream shattered. Is FSU playing with a chip. Who will play and who will opt out.

Bowls have become a crapshoot.

Yea, players opting out can be a big thing...



FSU players might want to show they deserved to be in... so maybe play, or know it is gong to be a blowout and not..


Georgia players the same...


Going to be interesting for a lot of bowls...

 

[Texas Proud]

I look forward to the 12 team playoff system next year. That will keep more schools involved in meaningful post season games. All the other bowl games just don't generate much interest anymore. The Alamo bowl this year with Arizona and OU could be a good one but OU's QB is transferring so he won't play. That's one thing that chaps me about today's game. You never heard of players sitting out bowl games 10 years ago or so. Now due to the NIL/portal and players getting ready for the NFL many star players don't play in the lower tier bowls. Understandable as they don't want to get hurt in a meaningless bowl game screwing up their draft pick or losing out on a good transfer deal. The game has changed a lot over the last several years.

It interesting, but I have read where there are a lot of players that earn more from their NIL than going to the NFL... and might not even get into the NFL...

 

[Breedlove]

The big ten games are not fun to watch . There are only two real teams Ohio State and Michigan . They never really get battle tested so when they get to the playoffs they lose.
Texas , Washington and Alabama have all had close games …battle tested . I don’t think Michigan will do much …

 

[unclemick]

Not following college football BUT as grad of the old UW back in ancient times when Pac 10 played the Big 10 in the Rose Bowl - gooo Huskies!

Heh heh heh - zero knowledge of the strength of the respective teams.

 

[jollystomper]

And the NFL should pay for them, not the other students or the state taxpayers. A similar thing should happen with big time college basketball. There is no reason the three highest paid state employees in the State of Connecticut should be the UConn men's and women's basketball coaches and the football coach.

The NIL system may lead to that. Currently it is the "wild wild west", and the only likely thing to streamline the current process will be the NFL getting involved. When you see more players deciding NIL over entering the draft - to better leverage and control which team they will end up on - then it start becoming closer to reality.

 

[mickeyd]

Both Georgia (from first to 6th??) and FSU (13-0 conf champ going from 4th to 5th after winning all games) got screwed big tine. Now they can decide who is best (after many of their BIG TIME players bail out of Orange Bowl play.)

 

[sparky08]

Between NIL and the transfer protocol and the best players skipping the bowls, I've lost interest in the bowls.

Oh, and my alma mater will never play in the playoffs, so there's that.

 

[Echard]

I can provide a bit of perspective on NIL and the money in college football. I was involved with the NIL initiatives at Texas.

While I agree with many that NIL is really distorting the game, it's very important to understand that there has been a shadow, illegal funding scheme for years in college football. I've seen direct, specific evidence multiple times of Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Auburn and other programs illegally paying players. I saw what players received money and how much. This is how Georgia became good so quickly after hiring Smart.

What's unclear to me is the full extent of the cheating. There are viewpoints that Notre Dame, Michigan, Texas and some other schools were not engaging in organized large illegal payment schemes, while other schools were (the $100 handshakes are really unclear). It's difficult to verify that because it's all under the table.

For years, the SEC had a bit of a gentlemen's agreement on how much they would pay players and who they would and would not target. That agreement a few years ago got turned upside down when Texas A&M went out and paid exhorbitant rates for players and targeted players they weren't supposed to target. It's pretty obvious when you see that a school with no real history of winning or recent success suddenly secures the top rated recruiting class in history.

The SEC brethrens then went after A&M hard on the recruiting trail and it's stunted their progress a bit recently. Then came NIL.

I don't like NIL either. But I also don't want to go back to under the table payments being dominant success factor for colleages. ESPN and the media don't talk about it because it might hurt the industry financially. Kirk Herbstreit and all these other guys know what's going on, but they ignore it. It's tough to be a college football fan today. Same thing is happening in basketball. At least NIL brings it out into the open and eventually the dollars should dwarf the under the table money.

 

[CardsFan]

Between NIL and the transfer protocol and the best players skipping the bowls, I've lost interest in the bowls.

Oh, and my alma mater will never play in the playoffs, so there's that.

Well, I saw MIZZOU beat THE Ohio state university last night

Now watching the Orange Bowl.

If I hear the words "OPT OUT" or "entering the PORTAL" again I think I will scream.

And why the heck are those players on the sidelines? If I were the coach I would tell them to pack their bags, hit the road, and buy a nose bleed seat if you want to watch. If you opt out, you opted out of the freaking team, stadium and university. They should be given the "walk" like they are leaving a megacorp.

I THINK the new plan next year will limit some of this, but....

 

[youbet]

Between NIL and the transfer protocol and the best players skipping the bowls, I've lost interest in the bowls.

+1

The "majors" are really just a semi-pro league with a built in fan base. I miss the old days where student-athletes dominated the rosters.

 

[jollystomper]

Georgia is proving that (a) the decision to leave them out of the playoffs was wrong, and (b) the decision to leave Florida State out of the playoffs was right.

Well, I saw MIZZOU beat THE Ohio state
If I hear the words "OPT OUT" or "entering the PORTAL" again I think I will scream.

And why the heck are those players on the sidelines? If I were the coach I would tell them to pack their bags, hit the road, and buy a nose bleed seat if you want to watch. If you opt out, you opted out of the freaking team, stadium and university. They should be given the "walk" like they are leaving a megacorp.

I THINK the new plan next year will limit some of this, but....

Any coach that did what you mention would soon find themselves unable to recruit players from the transfer portal. It is a two way street.

Those players who were good enough to opt out or transfer helped enrich the coach and the school while they played, as well. Also, there are enough examples of players getting late season injuries and impacting their NFL draft position that college coaches understand.

Blame it not on the players, but on the money. As Hyman Roth said, "This is the business we have chosen" .

 

[CardsFan]

Georgia is proving that (a) the decision to leave them out of the playoffs was wrong, and (b) the decisions to leave Florida State out of the playoffs was right.



Any coach that did what you mention would soon find themselves unable to recruit players from the transfer portal. It is a two way street.

Those players who were good enough to opt out or transfer helped enrich the coach and the school while they played, as well. Also, there are enough examples of players getting late season injuries and impacting their NFL draft position that college coaches understand.

Blame it not on the players, but on the money. As Hyman Roth said, "This is the business we have chosen" .

Agree with your first point 100%.

I understand your second point "Follow the Money". I just don't like it.

 

[RunningBum]

But now they are getting paid with NIL money. Some of them make 7 figures. Yet they still skip out on the bowl game?

If I'm an NFL team GM I'd be looking at those guys, wondering how motivated they'll be to play after signing a huge contract.

 

[Venturer]

Well it happened just like I thought, UGA got screwed, and took it out on FSU who was wishing they had stayed at home. But they learned what it takes to play with the big boys. UGA picked those oranges and then squeezed em till no more juice came out. And on top of that Kirby tried to have a little pity on them so he sent in the 2nd and 3rd strings in for the second 1/2. If you watched the game you have already seen the best team in college football play their last game this season. But I think it was the 1st game of their new undefeated run which I think will last for next season!!!!

 

[wrigley]

Well it happened just like I thought, UGA got screwed, and took it out on FSU who was wishing they had stayed at home. But they learned what it takes to play with the big boys. UGA picked those oranges and then squeezed em till no more juice came out. And on top of that Kirby tried to have a little pity on them so he sent in the 2nd and 3rd strings in for the second 1/2. If you watched the game you have already seen the best team in college football play their last game this season. But I think it was the 1st game of their new undefeated run which I think will last for next season!!!!

How do you figure GA got screwed? Not only did they lose a game to Alabama, they also lost the conference championship. They were immediately out of the top four after that game. Bama moved to #4 and they had to place Texas ahead of Bama since Texas handed Bama their only loss of the season. Give this some thought: At no time during the entire season was Texas ranked ahead of FSU. How did they magically jump to #3 ahead of an undefeated conference champion FSU at season's end? There are 5 power conferences in college football. Which boob decided on a 4 team playoff some years back? The selection committee never in their wildest dreams envisioned a scenario where all 5 conference champions were also the top 5 ranked teams in the country. It finally happened this year and one team had to be left out!!! GA kicked FSU's butt last night but the Seminoles played without their top two quarterbacks, top two running backs, top two receivers, starting tight end, three starting defensive linemen, two of three starting linebackers and three starting defensive backs. They were down 29 scholarship players in all. Not making excuses for FSU, but the game didn't mean a thing to them and I don't blame their top players for sitting out. Next year there will be 12 teams in the playoff and we will hear team #13 and #14 b^tching about being left out!


Mike

 

[Montecfo]

How do you figure GA got screwed? Not only did they lose a game to Alabama, they also lost the conference championship. They were immediately out of the top four after that game. Bama moved to #4 and they had to place Texas ahead of Bama since Texas handed Bama their only loss of the season. Give this some thought: At no time during the entire season was Texas ranked ahead of FSU. How did they magically jump to #3 ahead of an undefeated conference champion FSU at season's end? There are 5 power conferences in college football. Which boob decided on a 4 team playoff some years back? The selection committee never in their wildest dreams envisioned a scenario where all 5 conference champions were also the top 5 ranked teams in the country. It finally happened this year and one team had to be left out!!! GA kicked FSU's butt last night but the Seminoles played without their top two quarterbacks, top two running backs, top two receivers, starting tight end, three starting defensive linemen, two of three starting linebackers and three starting defensive backs. They were down 29 scholarship players in all. Not making excuses for FSU, but the game didn't mean a thing to them and I don't blame their top players for sitting out. Next year there will be 12 teams in the playoff and we will hear team #13 and #14 b^tching about being left out!


Mike

Sure. But FSU could have had everyone there and it would not have mattered.

Georgia may have been one of the four best, but they sinned by getting a loss at a bad time against a team that may very well win the natty.

Having said that, not sure Texas earned it. They had the worst loss and the competition within their conference was pretty weak. They beat Bama early but barely beat unranked a couple of times.

 

[pb4uski]

Between NIL and the transfer protocol and the best players skipping the bowls, I've lost interest in the bowls. ...

+1 It makes the bowls totally useless jokes because in many cases they are not the same teams that earned the right to play in that bowl game.

If I were king I would defer the opening of the transfer portal and declaring that one is going to go into the NFL draft until after the national championship is decided and would impose consequences on players who refuse to play in their bowl games.

 

[pb4uski]

I can provide a bit of perspective on NIL and the money in college football. I was involved with the NIL initiatives at Texas.

While I agree with many that NIL is really distorting the game, it's very important to understand that there has been a shadow, illegal funding scheme for years in college football. I've seen direct, specific evidence multiple times of Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Auburn and other programs illegally paying players. I saw what players received money and how much. This is how Georgia became good so quickly after hiring Smart.

What's unclear to me is the full extent of the cheating. There are viewpoints that Notre Dame, Michigan, Texas and some other schools were not engaging in organized large illegal payment schemes, while other schools were (the $100 handshakes are really unclear). It's difficult to verify that because it's all under the table.

For years, the SEC had a bit of a gentlemen's agreement on how much they would pay players and who they would and would not target. That agreement a few years ago got turned upside down when Texas A&M went out and paid exhorbitant rates for players and targeted players they weren't supposed to target. It's pretty obvious when you see that a school with no real history of winning or recent success suddenly secures the top rated recruiting class in history.

The SEC brethrens then went after A&M hard on the recruiting trail and it's stunted their progress a bit recently. Then came NIL.

I don't like NIL either. But I also don't want to go back to under the table payments being dominant success factor for colleages. ESPN and the media don't talk about it because it might hurt the industry financially. Kirk Herbstreit and all these other guys know what's going on, but they ignore it. It's tough to be a college football fan today. Same thing is happening in basketball. At least NIL brings it out into the open and eventually the dollars should dwarf the under the table money.

Thanks for the perspective. I'm afraid that it is just ruining the college football that so many of us love... though arguably perhaps it was ruined all along but we just couldn't see that is was ruined.

 

[sparky08]

Wow, just saw the score of the Orange Bowl!

I was listening to a sports talk show and the talking head said that the bowls are now like the NFL preseason. The best players aren't on the field. The second stringers (unless they've transferred) are trying to prove they are worthy.

Just saw that Ohio State scored three points against Missouri. Yikes! Did they have any good players left?

 

[Willers]

Between NIL and the transfer protocol and the best players skipping the bowls, I've lost interest in the bowls.

Oh, and my alma mater will never play in the playoffs, so there's that.

I agree completely. I tried to watch a game yesterday but lost interest. I doubt I'll even watch my school's game on NYD because of so many missing players. I have to believe that the bowl games will lose viewership as this becomes even more prevalent. I wonder if the bowls will start to disappear as the "playoffs" expand.

That said, I've always been in favor of college athletes being paid above the table. It was so crazy to see college coaches get multi-million dollar contracts while a free breakfast got a player a suspension or worse.

 

[RunningBum]

Just saw that Ohio State scored three points against Missouri. Yikes! Did they have any good players left?

The best WR in the country, Marvin Harrison Jr, opted out. Their starting QB transferred out. I bet tOSU rarely sees this. #2 QB got hurt. #3 QB was an untested freshman. Mizzou has a good enough team to shut them down