Sports Illustrated
So maybe that 12-team playoff isn’t such a great idea after all.
The Fake Selection Committee argued deep into the night this weekend, not over the final teams in the field but whether the field should be reduced to eight, or maybe four, or even two. Alabama and Georgia feel like they have separated themselves from everyone else in a way that has us salivating over Dec. 4—the date of the SEC championship, the true national title game. We are of course kidding. Kind of.
But that brings us to an important point. At least one qualm is emerging from this 12-team format. If the best two teams in the land are from the same conference, one of them can be seeded no better than fifth and won’t have the luxury of a first-round bye.
Take for instance this week’s 12-team format, where Iowa, Cincinnati and Oklahoma (!!) get a better position than the Bulldogs. If this playoff expansion model is approved without any adjustment to this provision, get ready for more of this: the second-best SEC team complaining about its seed because it lost to Alabama in the conference title game.
You’ll notice another issue with this format, too. The requirement to include six conference champions can cause problems. It means that at least two or three at-large teams are on the outside looking in despite possessing better résumés than the final league champion into the field.
Let’s all keep in mind that we are a month into the season and that résumés haven’t had the opportunity to strengthen just yet. Things will hopefully sort themselves out.
But enough complaining, let’s get to the field of 12 …
