College football has survived a century and a half without a bowl system and I think it will continue for a while at least without one.
People think a bowl system will magically solve all of the problems. If you want a truly representative playoff that won't leave out the little guys you have to minimally go to a 16 team playoff. This would give each FBS conference and one independent a spot and leave 4 or so at large bids. If you advocate anything but that system, IMO, you are pushing for a playoff that isn't going to solve the conflict, but instead redirect it to another spot. If we do a four team playoff we are left with arguing why the other conferences don't get a guy in. So you take those 12 and four (likely controversial in the spirit of CFB) at large bids. That leaves not only some really good teams out (for instance a Michigan State team this year would have gotten the axe) and some really poor teams in (Florida International).
I simply don't get how people can push for a 4 or even 8 team playoff contending that it is a more fair solution. In either case you are still leaving out teams that won an FBS conference.
I also don't get why people who like college football want to see such a change. Other than the BCS, which BTW gave teams like Boise and TCU any sort of chance at the Rose and other bowls that they never had gotten before, college football has remained unchanged for years. Why would a playoff now make something that people have always loved so much better?