Advertisement

Your Take: Are the conference commissioners on the right track with a playoff?

Graham Watson

Your Take is a chance to start thoughtful, spirited, intelligent and nice conversation about some of the hotter topics in college football. It allows the reader to have a voice as the best comments will be compiled into a later post (if there are enough good comments).

A college football playoff.

It's the topic that has been on everyone's mind for years and now it looks like it's going to happen.

[ Dan Wetzel podcast: Author of tell-all book on how agents operate tells his story ]

The 11 BCS conference commissioners and Notre Dame met in Dallas this week and, as the BCS email put it, "entered the 'brass tacks' level" in terms of finding a new way to choose a national champion.

But is it the right way? The best way?

While the group has not definitively said what type of playoff it plans to adapt, some of the quotes in the BCS email suggest that its leaning toward a four-team scenario (see the two games in a row part).

For example, if we change the current format, would we play some games on campus or all games on neutral sites? If some games are on campus, is that too much of a competitive advantage? If all games are at neutral sites, would fans be able to travel to two games in a row? How would teams be selected? By a committee, by the current ranking formula, or by a different formula? When exactly would games be scheduled, considering finals, holidays and our desire to avoid mid-January games?

All sorts of playoff scenarios have been bounced around from a plus-one to Mike Leach's idea of a 64-team playoff like the NCAA Tournament. So now it's your turn. Are the conference commissioners and Notre Dame on the right track with a four-team playoff? Is that the best way to decide a national champion? And if so, how do they determine which teams go? Do they go by a poll or with conference champions?

Personally, I don't have the perfect solution for a playoff, so I'm OK with a four-team bracket. However, I'd like to see all polls — not just the BCS standings — start in October to give all teams a fair shake at those top spots. Preseason hype should not be a factor in who gets to be at the top to start the year. It should be based on the performance through the first month/month and a half of the season. Not only will this make the poll fairer, it also will encourage teams to play tougher non-conference schedules and not schedule so many bodybag games (which is good for the fans!). If the four, eight, 12 teams — whatever — are chosen like that, then I'm on board.

What's your take?

- - -
"Like" Dr. Saturday on Facebook for football conversations and stuff you won't see on the blog. And follow Dr. Saturday at its new home on Twitter: @YahooDrSaturday

Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports:
• Virginia Tech must rebuild its offense this spring if it hopes to return to a BCS game
• Final Four rosters filled with former four- and five-star recruits
• NCAA tourney video: Which team will win the national championship?