Playoff/Iowa

[HawkForce]

I agree with Jon's new piece...I'm not that excited really about this playoff thing...I've been saying it for a long time. Iowa will NEVER have a shot at a national title if it goes to something like this.

The whole "We need a true champion" is kind of BS...why? I want to go back to the pre-BCS days.

Iowa would have only been eligible for this playoff 2 years since....1960...

If you're an Iowa fan, you shouldn't be jumping for joy over this...

 

[CPHAWK82]

I agree with Jon's new piece...I'm not that excited really about this playoff thing...I've been saying it for a long time. Iowa will NEVER have a shot at a national title if it goes to something like this.

The whole "We need a true champion" is kind of BS...why? I want to go back to the pre-BCS days.

Iowa would have only been eligible for this playoff 2 years since....1960...

If you're an Iowa fan, you shouldn't be jumping for joy over this...

All we have to do is win all our games

 

[SouthernBumpkin]

Iowa had a shot at a national title going into bowl season exactly zero times in the same period, right? Sounds to me like our odds of winning it all just increased.

 

[bamahawkeye]

Iowa, like 90% of college football, would have to have a lot of things go right to win the national title (pre BCS, BCS era, or now). I think that has changed a little now, but.......

I've said this before, and my view has been cemented even more with this 'playoff' talk. College football is the biggest joke in America. It's the biggest VIP club around.

I played sports to win. Pure and simple. I didn't care where we played, who we played or when we played. The objective was to win. That's it. While this is important in college football, it isn't the ONLY thing that matters. What other sport has polls that dictate anything? What other sport relies on "perception" of who's good. What other sport predetermines before the season even starts who should start where? What other sport has coaches, commissioners, presidents campaigning for their school and conference like they are now? It's sad when the insight of analysts is more impactful than the games that are played from week to week. It's a joke.

Alright, had to get that off my chest living in SEC country LOL. I'm not naive enough to think college football will ever be close to an even playing field. Most sports aren't. But college football is so slanted it's ridiculous. I'll enjoy every Iowa game as I do every year. But quite frankly, worrying about respect for Iowa or any other program in that 90% isn't worth it anymore. Until there is a playoff that gives every team a chance to be part of the discussion, college football won't be a sport to me. It will be what it is.....a beauty pageant.

 

[FML]

So if Iowa never had a chance at a NC before, why would the new 4 team playoff thing hurt? And it's not like there still won't be random bowl games for an 8 or 9 win Iowa team to go play in. Not much will change for teams like Iowa.
However, things will get more interesting for the big boys of college football. College football has THE BEST regular season but THE WORST post season of any sport. I'm excited for the change. Some of these bowl games, even the BCS one's have just been awful lately.

 

[treychase]

Iowa had a shot at a national title going into bowl season exactly zero times in the same period, right? Sounds to me like our odds of winning it all just increased.

Logic doesn't work here.

You need to wrap your thoughts up in your emotions, then present them

 

[DexterMorgan]

Iowa, like 90% of college football, would have to have a lot of things go right to win the national title (pre BCS, BCS era, or now). I think that has changed a little now, but.......

I've said this before, and my view has been cemented even more with this 'playoff' talk. College football is the biggest joke in America. It's the biggest VIP club around.

I played sports to win. Pure and simple. I didn't care where we played, who we played or when we played. The objective was to win. That's it. While this is important in college football, it isn't the ONLY thing that matters. What other sport has polls that dictate anything? What other sport relies on "perception" of who's good. What other sport predetermines before the season even starts who should start where? What other sport has coaches, commissioners, presidents campaigning for their school and conference like they are now? It's sad when the insight of analysts is more impactful than the games that are played from week to week. It's a joke.

Alright, had to get that off my chest living in SEC country LOL. I'm not naive enough to think college football will ever be close to an even playing field. Most sports aren't. But college football is so slanted it's ridiculous. I'll enjoy every Iowa game as I do every year. But quite frankly, worrying about respect for Iowa or any other program in that 90% isn't worth it anymore. Until there is a playoff that gives every team a chance to be part of the discussion, college football won't be a sport to me. It will be what it is.....a beauty pageant.

College Basketball

 

[ssckelley]

I say this over and over, I do not understand why these idiots do not get their heads out of their @sses, all they need to do is go to a plus one system. Play the BCS bowl games on New Years Day and play the BCS championship game 2 weeks after. Push all the rest of the bowl games before January 1st like they used to be.

 

[JHHawk]

Totally agree. The positives of a playoff of any flavor for an Iowa football fan are far outweighed by the negatives.

Positives:
1. Maybe a few more dollars to the athletic dept...but the Big Ten is already awash in money and this will only narrow the gap between the Power leagues and the great unwashed.

Negatives: where do I start?

1. This robs the Big Ten of the #2 asset in college football,every single year,the Rose Bowl. Even forgetting the sentimental factor, the dollars from the Rose Bowl give the Big Ten and Pac 12 a financial edge over the rest of the conferences...gone.

2. Tradition is the lifeblood of college football. No other sport is as steeped in nostalgia,socialbility,camardrie, ect... going to college football games is a true experience,all day. No other sporting event matches it. This playoff strips away more of the tradition(see Rose Bowl),romance,and sentiment. Becomes even more of a hard,cold-blooded business. Make the playoffs,or fire everyone...that will be the new standard as the playoff grows.

3. Playoffs will further stratify the sport. The talent is in the SE,SW and West Coast anyway. Now, with the same schools,mainly from those areas, in the playoffs year after year,they will separate themselves even more. Iowa need not apply. Telling a recruit that we make bowls every year used to mean something,but can it compete vs a school that makes the playoffs every other year? No way.

I could go on and on...the erosion of the best regular season in any sport,as the ratings clearly show, the exploitation of the players, the uneven playing field of the Big Ten vs the SEC in terms of school standards, ect.

I am still hoping and praying that somehow the Presidents come to their senses,(as the Nebraska President is on record supporting) and reel this back in to a Plus One.
To me, the Plus One is the best melding of the two approaches.
Still have all the traditions of the bowls seasons,including the matchups of league winners in the big bowls, which serves as a quasi-playoff,and then two teams selected as the best of the survivors.

I am convinced that the older fans in the Big Ten are against this playoff if they really think about the Rose Bowl going away.
This is driven by
1. Younger fans who have grown up on NFL playoffs...don't know better.
2. Big city media types who also have grown up on NFL playoffs,and are not grads of big time football programs schools,or been lifetime fans of a program like Iowa.
3. SEC and Big 12 fans,who see an edge for their schools in playoffs,due to local talent edge,and willingness to let anyone into school,and pay players under the table if necessary.

This 4 team playoff will not destroy the bowl system,but it leads to the path that will. The Plus One is the only possible solution that can really protect the bowl system.

As for the bowl system,I am all for cutting down on the number of bowls,and reforming the way the bowls are managed. Demand that the graft and corruption be eliminated. Reduce the overhead to schools, standardize the whole process...bring it into the sunlight. Fine....it aint perfect...but abandoning it totally would be a crime.
Screw Dan Wetzel!

 

[treychase]

I say this over and over, I do not understand why these idiots do not get their heads out of their @sses, all they need to do is go to a plus one system. Play the BCS bowl games on New Years Day and play the BCS championship game 2 weeks after. Push all the rest of the bowl games before January 1st like they used to be.

You "don't understand"?
Pretty simple why....Money and public pressure.

And for the record, I prefer a Plus One as well.

 

[olivecourt]

You guys realize that in 2009, even if Stanzi would have never gotten hurt and Iowa had gone undefeated, they would have had no shot at the championship, right? That's the system you're defending?

And please spare me the tradition argument. God forbid that the rich history of the Little Ceasar's Pizza Bowl be threatened. Give me a break.

 

[JHHawk]

As for the bowl attendance and tv ratings, the sheer number of bowls drags down the averages...I think those numbers are almost meaningless. Now, maybe the BCS title game numbers being down is meaningful, as it might indicate that a re-match between teams in the same division of the same league is not attractive to casual fans. Of course,this is exactly what the SEC/Big 12 cabal is fighting to do all over again with this playoff plan....they want multiple SEC and Big 12(LSU,Bama,Texas,OK) in the final four every single year. Kind of defeats the purpose of attracting those casual fans,right? But no, fans in the NE and NW can't wait to see Bama and LSU play in that title game again,and again,and again...now those ratings will boom!

 

[doclee]

JH Hawk...very well done, man.

 

[olivecourt]

I say this over and over, I do not understand why these idiots do not get their heads out of their @sses, all they need to do is go to a plus one system. Play the BCS bowl games on New Years Day and play the BCS championship game 2 weeks after. Push all the rest of the bowl games before January 1st like they used to be.

How would this have played out last year? What would have been the point of making LSU play another game? What problems does the +1 solve that a four-team playoff doesn't? I really don't get it.

 

[olivecourt]

As for the bowl system,I am all for cutting down on the number of bowls,and reforming the way the bowls are managed. Demand that the graft and corruption be eliminated. Reduce the overhead to schools, standardize the whole process...bring it into the sunlight. Fine....it aint perfect...but abandoning it totally would be a crime.
Screw Dan Wetzel!

How would you accomplish any of this? By royal decree? No one is in charge of the bowl system. That's why it is such a fiasco. You will never, ever have a bowl system without bloat, graft, and favoritism. You may think there are too many bowls, but the United Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl isn't going anywhere unless it faces real competition. A playoff is the only thing that provides that. So it's fine if you don't want a playoff, but don't pretend you can just cut out all of the crappy things about the bowls and just keep the good stuff. It's incredibly naive.

 

[BSpringsteen]

The idea of a playoff was great, the idea that came out of these meetings is ********* ******* assjuice drenched ********.

The BCS games should have been the playoffs.

Rose: B1G Champ vs. P12 Champ
Orange: ACC vs. Big East
Sugar: SEC vs. At Large
Fiesta: Big12 vs. At Large

But the point is, that Iowa and most of the Big Ten's goal is to win the conference championship, that is the only thing they can control.

 

[ssckelley]

You guys realize that in 2009, even if Stanzi would have never gotten hurt and Iowa had gone undefeated, they would have had no shot at the championship, right? That's the system you're defending?

And please spare me the tradition argument. God forbid that the rich history of the Little Ceasar's Pizza Bowl be threatened. Give me a break.

I do not see anyone here saying the system should not be changed. But this little playoff system they are proposing is taking away what has made major college football unique. If you want a playoff system then blow up the entire bowl set up and set up a FCS 16 team system. Give those 8-3 teams a chance at winning the national championship, hell the regular season means nothing anymore. Just like the NFL, have a team that barely makes the playoffs win it all.

The plus one basically solves everything and it brings a crapload of extra revenue into the BCS. The only way I would like the 4 team playoff is if they made the requirement of having to win your conference to get into it, and the SEC would never agree to it. They like the idea of having 1/2 the teams in this playoff system be from the SEC.

 

[ssckelley]

How would this have played out last year? What would have been the point of making LSU play another game? What problems does the +1 solve that a four-team playoff doesn't? I really don't get it.

Because you are forcing those top ranked teams defend that rank by playing teams from other conferences. If after playing those BCS bowls LSU & Alabama are still #1 & #2 then let them play that rematch.

 

[treychase]

Totally agree. The positives of a playoff of any flavor for an Iowa football fan are far outweighed by the negatives.

Positives:
1. Maybe a few more dollars to the athletic dept...but the Big Ten is already awash in money and this will only narrow the gap between the Power leagues and the great unwashed.
A few dollars? And the B1G universities are as financially strapped as anyone. Their funding continues to get cut.

Negatives: where do I start?

1. This robs the Big Ten of the #2 asset in college football,every single year,the Rose Bowl. Even forgetting the sentimental factor, the dollars from the Rose Bowl give the Big Ten and Pac 12 a financial edge over the rest of the conferences...gone.
Wrong, this new system will actually give us a "traditional" matchup MORE often. As for the financial side of it, they're working on a new 12 yr deal between the B1G/Pac & Rose Bowl, so it will remain the top paying/most profitable bowl game.

2. Tradition is the lifeblood of college football. No other sport is as steeped in nostalgia,socialbility,camardrie, ect... going to college football games is a true experience,all day. No other sporting event matches it. This playoff strips away more of the tradition(see Rose Bowl),romance,and sentiment. Becomes even more of a hard,cold-blooded business. Make the playoffs,or fire everyone...that will be the new standard as the playoff grows.
How will a playoff diminish a day at Kinnick? It won't. Its already win or fire everyone.

3. Playoffs will further stratify the sport. The talent is in the SE,SW and West Coast anyway. Now, with the same schools,mainly from those areas, in the playoffs year after year,they will separate themselves even more. Iowa need not apply. Telling a recruit that we make bowls every year used to mean something,but can it compete vs a school that makes the playoffs every other year? No way.
The SEC & B12 have already separated themselves. Its going to widen regardless of a playoff or no playoff. The B1G is a major conference in finances only.

I could go on and on...the erosion of the best regular season in any sport,as the ratings clearly show, the exploitation of the players, the uneven playing field of the Big Ten vs the SEC in terms of school standards, ect.
I like to ding the SEC as much as anyone, believe me, but one of our members(PSU) harbored a child rapist, so the days of standing on the soap box are over.

I am still hoping and praying that somehow the Presidents come to their senses,(as the Nebraska President is on record supporting) and reel this back in to a Plus One.
To me, the Plus One is the best melding of the two approaches.
Still have all the traditions of the bowls seasons,including the matchups of league winners in the big bowls, which serves as a quasi-playoff,and then two teams selected as the best of the survivors.
I prefer a Plus one as well, but we're the overwhelming minority.

I am convinced that the older fans in the Big Ten are against this playoff if they really think about the Rose Bowl going away.
This is driven by
1. Younger fans who have grown up on NFL playoffs...don't know better.
2. Big city media types who also have grown up on NFL playoffs,and are not grads of big time football programs schools,or been lifetime fans of a program like Iowa.
3. SEC and Big 12 fans,who see an edge for their schools in playoffs,due to local talent edge,and willingness to let anyone into school,and pay players under the table if necessary.

This 4 team playoff will not destroy the bowl system,but it leads to the path that will. The Plus One is the only possible solution that can really protect the bowl system.
Plus one just adds a step, the bowl system is going to die either way.

As for the bowl system,I am all for cutting down on the number of bowls,and reforming the way the bowls are managed. Demand that the graft and corruption be eliminated. Reduce the overhead to schools, standardize the whole process...bring it into the sunlight. Fine....it aint perfect...but abandoning it totally would be a crime.
Screw Dan Wetzel!

 

[hogeye]

If I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times...you can't make this work with 119 teams, 11 conferences and a handful of independents over a 12 game schedule.

The keep trying to address this problem at the back end when the underlying issue is really what needs addressed. It's time to break D1 up into two divisions.