Doomsday101
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 107,859
- Reaction score
- 39,148
NEW YORK -- Cross your fingers and keep them crossed. Then cross your toes.
The people in charge of college football are as close as they have ever been to seriously considering a playoff. But do they truly intend to move forward? Or is this merely a case of hurt feelings that will dissipate over time?
Monday, Big 12 athletic directors voted in a straw poll to get behind the idea of a plus-one format that would allow four teams to compete for the national title. Such a format would have allowed USC to play for the national title in 2003, Auburn to play for it in 2004, Texas to play for it in 2008 and Oklahoma State -- which finished behind No. 2 Alabama by the slimmest of margins in the BCS standings -- to play for the title this season. If the league's presidents choose to agree with their athletic directors, the Big 12's support would be a huge step forward. The Big 12 was one of several leagues that blocked SEC commissioner Mike Slive's 2008 proposal for a four-team, seeded tournament. The ACC was the only conference that supported the plan.
The structure of college football's leadership has changed significantly since 2008. Gone is Pac-10 commissioner Tom Hansen, who worked hard to keep his conference in the stone age. In his place is Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott, who already has rebranded the league, signed a lucrative and innovative media rights deal and promised more changes. Scott has made sure to say all the right things about maintaining the league's relationship with the Rose Bowl and the Big Ten, but Scott is a smart enough guy to figure out how to keep his league at the forefront while still maintaining its most cherished tradition. It's difficult to imagine him standing in the way. Besides, the Seattle Times reported this past summer that in a straw poll of Pac-12 and Big Ten athletic directors, the majority supported a plus-one.
Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20.../06/plus-one-playoff/index.html#ixzz1fxnokgzs
The people in charge of college football are as close as they have ever been to seriously considering a playoff. But do they truly intend to move forward? Or is this merely a case of hurt feelings that will dissipate over time?
Monday, Big 12 athletic directors voted in a straw poll to get behind the idea of a plus-one format that would allow four teams to compete for the national title. Such a format would have allowed USC to play for the national title in 2003, Auburn to play for it in 2004, Texas to play for it in 2008 and Oklahoma State -- which finished behind No. 2 Alabama by the slimmest of margins in the BCS standings -- to play for the title this season. If the league's presidents choose to agree with their athletic directors, the Big 12's support would be a huge step forward. The Big 12 was one of several leagues that blocked SEC commissioner Mike Slive's 2008 proposal for a four-team, seeded tournament. The ACC was the only conference that supported the plan.
The structure of college football's leadership has changed significantly since 2008. Gone is Pac-10 commissioner Tom Hansen, who worked hard to keep his conference in the stone age. In his place is Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott, who already has rebranded the league, signed a lucrative and innovative media rights deal and promised more changes. Scott has made sure to say all the right things about maintaining the league's relationship with the Rose Bowl and the Big Ten, but Scott is a smart enough guy to figure out how to keep his league at the forefront while still maintaining its most cherished tradition. It's difficult to imagine him standing in the way. Besides, the Seattle Times reported this past summer that in a straw poll of Pac-12 and Big Ten athletic directors, the majority supported a plus-one.
Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20.../06/plus-one-playoff/index.html#ixzz1fxnokgzs
