Drop the BCS Already!

There have been many great debates in history: Earth is flat vs. Earth is round, Roe vs. Wade, Pepsi vs. Coke. None of these debates, however, comes close to matching the magnitude of "BCS vs. Playoffs."

The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was implemented for NCAA football in 1998. Through a combination of computer programs and national polls, team rankings are established during the college football season. The top two teams end up meeting each other in the National Championship Game, which is the last college football game of the season. The winner of the National Championship Game receives at least a share of the national championship.

Besides the national championship, five other bowls are considered to be "BCS Bowls." From the ten teams in these bowls, six are the champions of the BCS conferences (ACC, Big-10, Big-12, Big East, Pac-10, and SEC). Additionally, Notre Dame automatically receives a bid to a BCS Bowl if it places in the top eight at the year's end rankings.

The BCS has been a rather polarizing system for NCAA football. There are vocal advocates for both keeping the BCS in place, and for removing it from the college football landscape and implementing a playoff system.

Proponents of a playoff system typically look to an eight-team seeded playoff. Their rationale for supporting the elimination of the BCS includes the fact that usually one or more undefeated teams are left out of the championship game.

One high-profile supporter of a playoff system is President Barack Obama. While a candidate for president in 2008, Obama appeared on Monday Night Football and was asked what he would change in sports. Obama's answer was that he supported having playoffs with the top eight teams and was not a fan of relying on computer rankings to determine the national championship.

Opponents of a playoff system, though raise the case that put such a system into place would extend the season. An eight-team playoff would take three weeks to complete. Another argument for keeping the BCS is that an emphasis is placed upon the regular season and every game is like a playoff game.

With this being the background for the debate, the NCAA should move away from the Bowl Championship Series and look to implement a playoff system.

It is ridiculous that in 2006 the nation ended up with two undefeated teams and they did not meet each other in the championship game. To further expand upon the absurdity of the situation, the team not invited to the National Championship Game (Boise State) won their bowl game and the previously undefeated team in the championship (Ohio State) lost. If a playoff system was utilized, and both teams remained undefeated, they would have faced off in the National Championship Game and a true champion could have been determined. If there are two undefeated teams, they deserve to play each other for the title. Period.

Additionally, the annual NCAA men's basketball tournament is one of America's most beloved sporting events. The reason for this is upsets always happen. If NCAA football adopted a playoff system, perhaps a #8-seed would be able to advance to the championship game and win it all. This nation loves seeing an underdog excel and playoffs would at least open the door to that possibility.

Finally, the BCS system is unfair to the non-major conferences. The teams in the power conferences have a considerably better chance of landing in a more prestigious bowl game. Six of the ten possible spots automatically go to BCS conference champions. That leaves four spots, but if Notre Dame is ranked in the top-eight, or should any runner-up in a power conference have a decent season, there are even less spots available for the other conferences.

There are proponents to keeping the Bowl Championship Series, and there are those who rally for its removal from the NCAA football landscape. Both sides can put up compelling arguments, but, in the long run, more NCAA football programs could benefit from its removal and the adoption of a playoff system.