The dustbowl era Prairie Schooner jalopy should be ready for our trip. Not sure it will hold up to 80 and 15 though.

Only thing I’m not clear on is how Texas stayed in.

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Long as I get tickets and three squares a day, I'll be content.

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Since this thread is about to get boring.

Georgia started the season #1. They sit all of their starters for the first 6 games, losing all 6 of those games. They then win the next 7 including the SEC title game. They win all games by at least 14 points.

Does Georgia make the college football playoff this year?

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Alabama and Texas were a pair. If you put Alabama in the playoffs, it's hard to justify leaving out a team that (a) has an identical record to and (b) beat that team on the road.

The TV networks weren't going to have a playoff without an SEC team.

Why not get rid of meaningless bowl games and just put every bowl eligible team in a playoff?

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I get that it would make the committee look bad, but the FSU decision was the committee telling us that the games themselves don’t matter. Nobody thinks Texas is better than Georgia.

Just say that Alabama is a different team than it was week 2 and therefore that game is no more important than FSU’s games.

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The bold is the part though. Of course they are telling us that the games don't matter, the only thing that has mattered for too long is the money. Alabama makes the media companies happy, when you prostrate yourself to the altar of media money above all else, this is the result. So if Alabama HAS to be in the playoffs, then conveniently for the media partners Texas HAS to be in the playoffs. FSU gets left out because its money that matters.

It's one step above WWE essentially, you're just scripting the best matchups for ratings.

Is Alabama, and the SEC generally, such a big TV draw? I might be in the minority, but I'm bored to tears by both of them. A matchup between Washington and Michigan would be more interesting than SEC team X beating the snot out of some non SEC team.

I mean we just have to look at the media rights deals between the SEC and media networks, and the ACC and media networks to know which is more valuable in the eyes of TV executives. I'm with you, I'd be more excited to see FSU back in the mix, just as I am with Washington, but if you asked ESPN who they want in the top 4 slots every year, if they were honest they would say the top two teams in the SEC and the top two teams in the Big 10. Shit, maybe some years they would say the top three in the SEC and top Big 10.

I'd say keep them--but with all the opt-outs and portal mofos, I am inclined to agree with you. Some of those fanbases love to travel, though, so it's easy money for the community if you get a Nebraska, Iowa, Georgia, ND, OSU (unfortunately), and so on.

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On a related note, the story of how ND ended up in the Sun Bowl is amusing:

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Funny that's how they hired Marcus Freeman too

Probably just as long as sitting around and waiting for the championship game to get here.

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Sounds like a regular season worth devaluing if an undefeated ACC team isn't making the playoffs because ESPN wants a different team!

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I'll say this Rick, if the powers that be want to devalue the regular season like this under a four team format, than those like me who continually point out that increasing number of teams in a postseason devalues the regular season don't have a point to make anymore.

That said, if the farce of a 13-0 team with the profile of FSU (two power five non-con wins, top 10 point differential, power conference title winner) can be left out over two other teams that have one loss, then under the current format there isn't the value in the season that some people thought. Sucks for the FSU kids that worked their asses off all year to find out this way.

Start the year in the top 10 and lose three games in the right cadence and you're in the playoffs!!!!

If I’m Liberty, I’m hanging a banner right damn now.

Call the bowl game a meaningless exhibition in advance and make yourself 2023 National Champions.

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It was hilarious when in 2014 or something Texas A&M hung a banner as the national champs in the year 1934 or something. Like it just took 80 years or so to sort it all out.

The 2023 Penn State Nittany Lions are exhibit A why expanded playoffs are unnecessary. Unnecessary unless you are a TV exec or conference commissioner groveling for every last dollar.

In essentially every scenario of a 12 team playoff, Penn St would be comfortably in the bracket. This is a team that beat absolutely nobody of consequence (one top 25 victory) and had two shots at elite teams, one at home, and lost both.

Do we really need to see Penn St play anyone else to know they are not the best team in the country?

The regular season did a pretty convincing job of proving that Penn St is nowhere close to the best team in the country.

You all know that FSU wasn't getting in even if Georgia won, right? It'd still be Texas. The committee was stringing along these poor saps and honest to God, I think there should be consequences for it.

I blame the Penn St. phenomenon on B1G media trying to pretend either of their real teams have more than one game of consequence.

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I don’t know. I think the committee would’ve been happy sacrificing them to UGA to get a Georgia-Mich final.

Second option gives them a shot at Bama-Texas.

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In most years, there aren't even three title contending teams, let alone twelve. The ultimate test is going to be not watching this thing when it starts. As I type this, I'm committed to not watching it until it gets down to four teams. We'll see what happens when it actually starts.

It’s going to be great. The committee kind of acknowledged a truth of the sport with the FSU thing: most teams are an injury or two away from changing completely.

Plus Notre Dame should get in most years - what’s not to like?

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as does having half your roster enter the transfer portal (tOSU has 12 Dr Who'ing it, incl QB McCord) + no doubt Harrison Deuce and other potential early round NFL Buckeye draft picks taking a pew for the Bowl game leaves Ohio State handicapped with a roster of 4 and 5 star recruits/future NFL starters to trot out down in the Metroplex for the (14)88th Goodyear Cotton-Eyed Joe Bowl Classic against MIzzou. Tigers only losing 6 players in the xfer portal and does anyone draft a MIssouri player before the 5th round? Nonetheless, the result is Missouri--who would be, what, a TD+ dog in a regular season match-up vs Ohio State with full rosters on each side?--favorites:

Well, they would likely be playing a road game against Georgia to avoid the rematch with OSU so those losses would simply need them to prove they could win @Georgia, and then beat Washington or Texas and then beat Alabama or Michigan.

I would say if they could beat Georgia, Texas, and Alabama they would be a deserving champion.

The flipside of your argument though is that this year we know that Georgia, FSU, and OSU are all clearly capable of winning the national title. Oregon may be too but they are just a terrible matchup with Washington.

Now, I do agree with you that an 8 team playoff would probably be better but that is less money and also you can't give the top 4 seeds a major advantage by giving them a bye. I think that is one of the primary things you ignore about the regular season mattering. The first round bye is a massive advantage in football. One less game and one less chance of injury.

Using the OSU/Michigan game:
The winner got a first round bye, and Oregon/Missouri in the semi-finals.
The loser got a first round game against Missouri/Ole Miss(avoiding the rematch with PSU), and Washington in the semi-finals if they make it there and the only reason it is that good is because both teams were undefeated going into that game. If OSU had even one loss prior they easily could have been going to Georgia to get blown out.

Ultimately, you are right that the road teams in the 9-12 range aren't as good as the top 4 teams but they also get a significantly harder path.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

The bye week should be an advantage, and it definitely is for top shelf programs like Bama/Georgia in warm-weather states with rosters full of NFL aspirants.

However, the challenge for Big 10 teams and one reason the Big 10 usually has a poor showing in Bowl games is the combination of a long lay-off between the end of the regular season and when they play their Bowl game + cold AF weather in Big 10 country + holiday eating--these Big 10 players show up for their Bowl games in Zona/Fla/Cali out-of-shape and get the run-around from Pac 10/Big 12/SEC warm(er)-weather teams.

If Michigan wants a legit shot at a national title Harbaugh should give the team a week off and then fly out to southern California this weekend and stay out there for 2 weeks to prepare for the Rose Bowl.

The playoffs will be great because you want to root for talented hard working underpaid 19 year old kids to get injured?

Uh?

You were probably a big bumfights guy back in the day I guess.

I don't need any of that coalcar full of bullshit to know that PSU isn't one of the top tier teams in college football. All we have to do is roll the tape from the past 12 weeks, their second best win was against the Delaware Blue Hens. I don't need to seem them play Georgia to know they aren't a top team this year, the regular season has proven that.

You can save all your equivocation for when you suck off the Big 10 Comish or something. The conferences and TV execs want more money, full stop. They are making the post season easier to access and thus making the regular season less valuable, full stop. They are doing this for money. If your position is that you enjoy a more inclusive postseason that is a fine and justifiable position, but there is no question it devalues the regular season. It isn't a good thing or a bad thing, it just is a thing.