The College Football Playoff

What a wrench that has been thrown into the College Football Playoff.  It comes down to a messy Big 10.  Should Penn State go?  Should Ohio State go?  Should Michigan be included?  Should a 2 loss team be included?

It’s pretty clear to me that Alabama, Clemson, and Washington should be in.  Yes, the Big 10 was the best football conference in the country this year.  But, in other years the SEC has been dominant and it’s rarely had two teams in.  Heck, there have been years the SEC West could have had it’s own national championship game given how poor the rest of the teams were in comparison.

One thing that is true, if you decentralize decision making and try to create market based incentives for action, capital is allocated more efficiently.  How does this play into the college football playoffs?

Maybe getting a lot of input from the entire Big 1o conference over who they should feel their representative should be.  I remember back in the olden days when teams went to 1 bowl.  The conferences would get together and vote on who the representative should be.   In the Big 10, it often came down to Michigan and Ohio State.  One year, there was huge controversy and Ohio State went to the Rose Bowl over Michigan.  That year, they played to a 10-10 tie.  Woody was happy, Bo was sad.

The coaches that play each other know who’s team is the most talented.  They might even take advisory votes from their players.  They know who the most athletic players on each team are since they played them on the field play after play.

If they took an anonymous vote among the coaches, who would they pick?

Who would you pick to be the Big 10 representative?  If I were king, I’d pick Ohio State.  They laid an egg at Penn St in a close game.   Any team can have one off night.  If they win that game, they knock of Wisconsin and are Big 10 champs.  The game was on the road, and it was very close.  I’d send the Nittany Lions to the Rose Bowl to face USC.  Michigan will still go to a Jan 1 Bowl game.  It just won’t be the championship or the traditional Big 10 bowl.

If I had to predict who will win the playoff, it’s harder than it looks.  Alabama is very very good.  But, their QB isn’t accurate with his arm.  I think anyone has a chance to win it all.  Clemson might have the best chance, but the Huskies defense is pretty good.