My NCAA Football Solution...

Hey guys, its Mike.  I'm up late and decided to fix a problem that I've been having with college football.  There’s debates going about if BCS is good or bad and if there is a better system out there.  Some people want a playoff and others want bowl games.  I think we can reach an agreement in the middle that will benefit both sides of the argument.

What if you keep the BCS ranking system all year as usual but change the postseason format? After conference championship week, take a look at the BCS standings.  Select the top 8 teams in the standings and make a playoff: 1v8, 2v7, 3v6, 4v5.  They play in a three week playoff in the middle of December.  The winner is crowned National Champs.

Here's what it would have looked like if my system was implemented last season:

The 7 games can be played in various neutral sites similar to (or exactly like) the BCS bowl games.  Fiesta, Rose, Orange, and Sugar bowls can have one of these playoff games each and 3 more exclusive bowls can also be entered to have a playoff game (ex: Cotton, Chick-Fil-A, Music City).  Each year the championship game can rotate just as it does now ensuring fairness among the elite bowls. 

There could be controversy over the 7, 8, 9, 10 seeded teams because obviously somebody will be left out.  However it will be unlikely that an 8 seeded team will make it through the gauntlet of teams on its way to the championship.  If for some reason this happens to be the case for several years, we can go back to the drawing board again.  But who wouldn't want to see all these great games?  For three weeks in a row everyone is guaranteed awesome playoff games with the best teams in the country.  At the end, a true winner is crowned and all the complainers generally shut up.

While the playoff teams are fighting over the weekends, other teams that are bowl eligible play in regular bowl games.  They will have a similar system to the bowl games we see now.  Throughout December, and maybe the beginning of January, teams that are bowl eligible can have an end of season game as a reward for their hard work.  These games would be played around the country at the different bowl sites during the week, leaving the big games for the weekend.

By doing this the schools are happy because they are guaranteed money for themselves through the bowl games.  The fans (and teams) are happy because there is a playoff.  Also, by having the lesser bowls be played during the week it gives viewers something to watch while waiting for the playoffs.  As the month wears on, better bowls will be sprinkled in during the week and the playoff games will get more and more intense.  It can be argued that a season with playoffs means two teams will play up to 16 games (with a conference championship game) and that is way too much.  However, the entire playoff system will take place while the students are on winter break, won't interfere with school and I think 18-23 year olds would be just fine playing a few extra games.

No system is perfect but I think the BCS does a good job at figuring who the best teams are while a playoff ensures a fair shot for each of the elite teams.  I think it could work very well but who am I but a simple college student.  There are millionaires and school presidents who have the job of figuring out what to do but they have to change it somehow.  I'm sure there are a few kinks to work out with this system but I also think its the best one thrown out there. 

Blog de la Awesome

Welcome! This is the first official blog of the Side of Elvis era so thank you for reading. 

With the college rankings coming out today for the upcoming football season, we thought it would be fun to look at the rankings and make a few bold (and lame) predictions.

First we have to start with number one team in the land…the Oklahoma Sooners. 

Led by possible Heisman candidates Landry Jones and Ryan Broyles, the Sooners are looking to build on a good 2010 campaign and have their eyes on a National Championship.   I think this is a good choice as the top team with no clear cut favorite.  Typically you would see the national champion from the previous year in the top spot but Auburn lost their stud, Scam Newton, and will likely not crack the top 15 this season.  The most interesting thing to watch in Auburn will be whether the historic trees can make it through the season.  Back to the sooners, their toughest test will be September 17 against FSU.  This game will be an indicator to see if they are pretenders or contenders.

We have a few critiques with the rankings (no worries though, nobody’s perfect).

 

                Notre Dame: are you kidding me? What have they done that warrants a number 18 ranking? They played pretty good down the stretch last year but against iffy competition.  They have a soft schedule this season that could enable them to move up far in the standings but I’m sure they have a few bad surprises that will leave Notre Dame purists cringing.

                Mississippi State:  They’re a team on the rise; they play in the tough SEC west but have a decent shot to do some damage if they can find a consistent passing attack.  Last year they won nine games with a great defense and a stellar running game.  Look out for the Bulldogs to wreak some havoc .

Florida State:  Another team that is ranked too high to begin the season.  This team has enough potential to be ranked this high eventually but they haven’t proved enough to be given such elite status.  The favorites to win the ACC (which isn’t saying much) have to go through the Sooners to prove they belong with the big boys.  The defense should be very good, but the question marks are on the offensive side.  Can the Noles fill the gap left by first round pick (Go VIKES) Christian Ponder and All-ACC lineman Rodney Hudson and Ryan McMahon.

Florida: After a rough 2010 season, they look to rebound with new coaches Will Muschamp and offensive guru Charlie Weis.  So far the post-Tebow era hasn’t shown much promise but they certainly have the athletes to compete at a high level. We think that a ranking of 23^rd is about right.  Should be interesting to see how they fare with a defensive minded coach.

We watch a lot of ESPN and  based solely on that we think we have enough credibility to predict EXACTLY how the season will turn out.  If Peter King and Kirk Herbstreit can do it, why can’t we?

Heisman Watch List:

1. Landry Jones, QB Oklahoma

2.  Kellen Moore, QB Boise St.

3. LaMichael James, RB Oregon

4.  Marcus Lattimore, RB South Carolina

5.  Justin Blackmon, WR Oklahoma St.

Freshman Impact Players:

1.       Jadeveon Clowney, DE South Carolina

2.       Sammy Watkins, WR Clemson

3.       Aaron Lynch, DE Notre Dame

Here at A Side of Elvis we have certain abilities that allow us to look into the future and tell you who will win.  After reading this you should go to your local bookie and bet no less than $10,000 on each of these picks because there is no chance we will be wrong. None. Nada.

(P.S. if you don’t understand sarcasm, this may not be the best place for you)

Conference Winners:

ACC: Florida State (a weak ACC puts FSU in the driver’s seat)

Big 10: Wisconsin (Russell Wilson is the missing piece of the Badger puzzle)

Big 12: Oklahoma (Top team in the country, may be most complete team)

Big East: West Virginia (but it’s honestly a crapshoot)

Pac-12: Oregon (Stanford is a little overrated with Harbaugh headed to San Fran)

SEC: LSU (could be Bama, South Carolina, or even Miss St but LSU seems to always be in the mix)

National Championship:

Oregon vs. Boise St(total shot in the dark)

Our reasoning is that no team in a BCS conference will go undefeated but a one loss Oregon team could creep their way into the championship.  If Oregon can remain unscathed against LSU and Stanford, they’re strength of schedule could bump them up.   Boise State is loaded with talent and the senior Kellen Moore is going to do everything in his power to lead his team to the Promised Land.