The real clash of the titans

I've hated the BCS for years.

Sure it is better than the previous system, where the number one ranked team would be forced to play in a predetermined bowl game instead of against the number two team in the land. Recall, this happened back in 1994 when the Nittany Lions of Penn State were undefeated and ranked number two in the land. The Cornhuskers of Nebraska were undefeated and ranked number one in the country. Under the BCS these two teams would have played each other and settled it all on the field (and what a game it would have been. Here's just a few of the names - Tommy Frazier, Lawrence Philips, Kerry Collins, Ka Jana Carter, and Kyle Brady). However, prior to the BCS, conferences were tied to specific bowl games. Thus, Penn State faced Oregon in the Rose Bowl. Nebraska faced Miami in the Orange Bowl.

Both won . . . both were undefeated . . . Nebraska were voted national champs and Jo Pa's team got screwed! But that was life before the BCS.

Now, the BCS system is better than the previous one, but it is still flawed! Remember in 2001 when Colorado destroyed Nebraska in the final game of the season? Nebraska was ranked number one. Colorado went to the Big 12 Championship and beat Texas. Yet, who went on to play Miami for the National Championship?

Did the 10-2 Buffaloes, who actually beat Nebraska and won the Big-12 conference? Did Oregon, who was undefeated and won the Pac-10?

Nope.

The brilliant BCS computers determined that Nebraska should face Miami in the Orange Bowl!

Stupid! How can a team that didn't even win its conference still play for the national championship?

Finally, for about the second or third time in its existence, the BCS has actually worked correctly.

The two best teams in college football, Oregon and Auburn will play for the National Championship.

Sorry TCU, who finished third and undefeated, but you played a cupcake schedule and beat a bunch of nobodies. Boise State might have had a beef had they gone undefeated (after all, they beat Oregon the previous two years and they beat the Virginia Tech Hokies in the first game of the year (and those Hokies ended up winning the ACC and eleven games in a row), but when they choked against Nevada two weeks ago, they rendered this discussion moot.

But while this system worked this year, how can college football fans not still dream of what a playoff schedule would be like?

So many great teams (Arkansas, Boise State, TCU, Stanford, Alabama) could still have a shot at a national championship if we had a playoff system.

Now, I know a lot of people were talking that last weekend, with most of the conference championship games being played, as well as bitter rivalries (the Civil War with Oregon beating Oregon State and Connecticut beating Southern Florida to win the Big East) was like the first round of the college football playoffs, but that's just not the case.

For all intents and purposes, Boise's and Arkansas' seasons are over. Sure bowl games are great. But how excited can you be for the Carquest Holiday bowl or the Humanitarian bowl?

But imagine if there were 16 teams all still in the national championship hunt? That would make for 8 pretty vital bowl games. Of course that would nettle down to the finals and then a true national championship that would have the sports world buzzing. You think March Madness is Mad? Just imagine what the sports world would be like with college football playoffs?

It just makes too much sense. But that is probably the problem with it all.