Alternative Playoffs: 16-Team and 32-Team Plans
These last two plans are admittedly unlikely, but viable alternatives to the status quo that include greatly widening the playoff field.
First, a refresher on the current playoff system:
-4 teams who play in two Semifinals
-The Semifinals are 2 bowl games out of the “New Year’s Six,” meaning the sites will be Pasadena (Rose), Glendale (Fiesta), or Arlington (Cotton) and New Orleans (Sugar), Atlanta (Peach), or Miami (Orange)
-A playoff committee ranks all teams and seeds the 4 playoff teams
-Which teams play in which bowl is defined geographically; the higher seed will ideally have a better crowd advantage at the game
Now, two alternative propositions:
16-Team Playoff
The Format: This one's pretty simple- all 10 conference champions qualify, as do 6 at-large teams, and they are seeded by rank. At least the first two rounds would be played at the home field of the higher-seeded team.
Case Study: The talks of an expanded playoff field began before the current format even had its inaugural semifinals. The playoffs as we know it began in 2014-15, but were announced before the 2012 season, which saw chaotic movement in the Top 10. Notre Dame and Alabama were a clear top 2, though they played the worst championship game ever that season, but had the playoff existed, heads would have rolled attempting to fill out the field. Non-conference champions Florida and Oregon were ranked 3rd and 4th, conference champions Kansas State and Stanford were ranked 5th and 6th, and the rest of the Top 10 included ACC Champions Florida State, 11-2 Georgia, who lost the SEC Championship in the final seconds, and red-hot 10-2 Texas A&M, featuring Heisman winner Johnny Manziel. Under this system, there would have been space for all of those teams. Here's how 2012-13 might have played out:
First Round
(1) Notre Dame def. (16) Tulsa
(8) Texas A&M def. (9) Florida State
(4) Kansas State def. (13) Utah State
(12) Louisville def. (5) Stanford [Louisville smacked Florida in the Sugar Bowl that year, while Stanford barely held off a 5-loss Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl]
(6) Oregon def. (11) Boise State
(3) Florida def. (14) Wisconsin
(7) Georgia def. (10) Northern Illinois
(2) Alabama def. (15) Arkansas State
Quarterfinals
(8) Texas A&M def. (1) Notre Dame [A&M finished the season winning 11 of their last 12 with a Heisman Winner at QB, while Notre Dame finished by losing 42-14, sooooo yeahhh...]
(12) Louisville def. (4) Kansas State [Kansas State couldn't handle Oregon's speed in the Fiesta Bowl, and with Teddy Bridgewater at QB, Louisville had plenty of speed]
(6) Oregon def. (3) Florida
(2) Alabama def. (7) Georgia [Dejá vu!]
Semifinals
Cotton Bowl: (8) Texas A&M def. (12) Louisville
Orange Bowl: (6) Oregon def. (2) Alabama [I know, I know-- Alabama won the Championship that year by 30 points. But they didn't play a team as ruthless and fast as Oregon; the only team that came close to that was a hot Texas A&M team who beat them on their home field]
Final
(6) Oregon def. (8) Texas A&M [This would have been an unbelievable, high-scoring affair, but I truly believe that Oregon team might be one of the best to not play for a championship]
32-Team Plan
The Format: A fair amount of the 16-team plan would apply here as well. All conference champions would qualify for the playoffs, as would plenty of at-large teams. Unlike any other playoff system, a 32-team field could be split into regions, a la March Madness, with the "Regional Finals" being held at bowl sites. For instance, the "South" Region would culminate at the Cotton Bowl, the "North" at the Pinstripe Bowl, the "West" at the Rose Bowl, and the "East" at the Orange Bowl. Alternatively, the higher seed could simply host until the Championship game, but the former options is one way to still incorporate the major bowl games.
Case Study: This would take up far too much space to fully run through. So instead I'll post rudimentary pictures of a simulation I did based on the final rankings/bowl performances from this season.
Here was the left side of the bracket:
And the right side:
And finally, the Final Four:
Pros:
Egalitarian in that it includes representatives from all conferences
Still affords places for several to many at-large teams
Prevents "rust" because the postseason would start immediately after regular season
A 16-team could still work with the current Semifinal format
A 32-team would mirror the postseason of all other divisions of College Football
Generates more excitement in the way March Madness does
Cons:
Would either require shortening the regular season or playing a much longer season overall
Likely interferes with/disrupts tradition of bowls
Devalues the importance of the regular season
In a similar vein, runs the risk of crowning a champion who underwhelmed before playoffs
Conference auto-bids would leave better teams out, particularly in the 16-Team Plan