College Football Playoff Blowouts - Fixes Needed? (Josh Pate Cut)

[@samrauch8334]

We went from an undefeated FSU whining about missing the playoff, to multiple 9-3 SEC teams whining😂

[@robcd7112]

I mean the multiple 9-3 SEC teams would have destroyed the undefeated FSU team so you're kind of making their case.

[@DoohickeyDinkle]

@@robcd7112 in your opinion, based on your opinion

[@Legendary_UA]

With better strength of scheduling than the aforementioned.

[@alod247]

@@robcd7112 we don’t count imaginary wins in sports. Games are played on the field, not on paper

[@robcd7112]

@@alod247 I think FSU would count imaginary wins at this point.

[@sc100ott]

Josh: “What is the purpose of a playoff?” Reasonable people: “To determine a National Champion.” Blindly Passionate Fans: “To give my team a chance!” Corporate Execs: “To make more money, of course!”

[@randalcquebedeaux314]

It has never determined a national champion it has just made money for...put in your choice!

[@kevinbond8966]

Me: "so I can be entertained" I was not entertained. Clemson and SMU shoulda been replaced by South Carolina and Bama.

[@paulsammon538]

Are you not entertained!!???

[@kevinbond8966]

@@paulsammon538 Hahaha, I was not.

[@notusedexer]

It has nothing to do with SEC team versus another team. What it has to do with is that when you reward teams with good records over teams that are better than them, you make it so that any team is a fool who schedules a good team. Every single team, and I mean every single team, should only schedule mother's sisters of the poor for their opponent. It's not going to make a freaking bit of difference if you win that game. Because they're only going to look at the win loss record. Nobody cares who you beat. Look at people like Indiana and SMU . Or look at Clemson. They could have played nobody, absolutely nobody all year long, then when their conference championship. We have made it so that regular season is a farce. And any team who continues to schedule good opponents is an idlot, a total complete full idlot. So we get what we reward. We reward teams that play nobody, so all teams will over time start playing nobody. We have destroyed college football. The only way to build it back up is to reward teams that play tough teams even even even if it helps the SEC. I DON'T THINK COLLEGE FOOTBALL CAN BE SAVED. People resent players leaving their team and going to another team. The bowl game system was the most awesome ever created and we're destroying that. To fix the system, we need to go back to the original bowl games and then if you want to have a playoff afterwards, seed the playoff teams after the bowl season is over. But it's just a matter of time until college football fades away. It already disgusts me listening to the announcers and every single player is transferred from another school. I used to flip channels to listen to teams that were about to be upset. But now who cares? Getting upset doesn't even affect your playoff chances. Look at Notre Dame, they lost to mother sister of the poor and who cares? It didn't hurt them at all. They were never going to get a top seed because they're not in a conference. And if they were in a conference, that's not even a conference game. So the game was essentially meaningless. Do they understand how much they're destroying college football?

[@dentonyoung4314]

Obviously home-field advantage in a playoff game is worth about 25 points.

[@Gunner662]

It's worth a lot more than 3. The next round will prove how important it is to have home field.

[@yo547yu7]

Another reason why it should be neutral sight, Isn’t it crazy that between the 4 games the highest seeds in each game were favored to loose?

[@Gunner662]

@@yo547yu7 except Tenn/Ohio State. OSU was favored by 7.5 points.

[@jasonsaban3883]

@@dentonyoung4314 getting a playoff berth after playing the Truckstop Allstars all season is priceless

[@nateisinvincible]

@@yo547yu7home field is apart of the game. It’s what makes this sport special

[@stephengoodell5984]

I like Josh's take, but I think he is missing the part where just making a playoff can cause momentum for a program. That momentum can lead to a program that isn't normally talented becoming more and more talented

[@claycarpenter8625]

I don't think he is saying it could NEVER happen but it's not gonna be common at all. It won't be a common thing. It won't be every year or even once every 5 years.

[@randalcquebedeaux314]

@@claycarpenter8625 NO he said never several times!!

[@njenkins1112]

You mean like what TCU did?

[@claycarpenter8625]

@randalcquebedeaux314 well then that's on him. I try my hardest to never say never or every or always. I know I just said those words technically but context is a factor. And exclude the obvious smart answer like yeah but 2+2 always equals 4. I'm speaking of things out that aren't just flat out truth that can be proven. Human situations or life experiences that we don't control and that applies to what he said.

[@Cam-x4k]

TCU?? They made the natty and have done nothing since

[@jansonroberts2616]

The ONLY FIX is to have Written, Transparent Metrics and Guidelines that determine who, why and when the 12, 14 or 16 teams get in. Then schools can have a clear goal to reach the playoffs.

[@RB-.-]

The only fix is to centralize schedules and make sure each team has 4 or 5 serious tests. No more "my 9 wins are better than your 11 wins"

[@paulsammon538]

No more vs fcs games. Those games should be replaced with cross conference games. The SEC should play the ACC and Big 12 instead of their late season fcs game

[@ponyboyc]

Win your conference championship only guarantee. Out side of that your putting it in the hands of a room full of guys and everyone has a different opinion on who is better. It doesn't matter what rank you are anymore what matters is you record. Strength of schedule doesn't matter anymore becaus at some point you play the bottom half of the conference.

[@paulsammon538]

@ponyboyc Indiana got in and a lot of people thought they shouldn't have. They lost and they're done now. Tennessee got in, most people thought they belonged and many thought they would win. They got the worst ass whoopin of all. I'd say the playoffs are having the desired effect of eliminating teams that can't win the national championship

[@ponyboyc]

@paulsammon538 thats exactly the point. Let them have a shoot and see what happens if you never give them a shoot you would never know and that's not a blanket statement to say see we gave it to you and you failed so never again

[@JackieMoon0914]

Reminder: Josh Pate picked 4 out of 5 conference championships wrong

[@tacticalmattfoley]

Josh is also a baseball guy.......baseball is a tournament sport by design.

[@kevinbond8966]

And?

[@pharaohbtw]

what does that have to do with his logic?

[@IamRa-18]

That’s the wonderful thing about college football.. nobody expected Arizona State and Boise State or Clemson or SMU to actually win, but they did. If this were the NFL pate gets 4/5 correct

[@thpeacemaker]

How many did you get right?

[@PerfectNeon_]

"Boise State has no shot at winning this"...that's because the old CFP system favored select programs to get top talent. The new playoff + transfer portal + NIL will spread the wealth and smaller teams, OVER TIME, and will become more successful as long as this format is not abandoned. Also, the first round is a PLAY IN game, not a playoff. Didn't win your conference? Prove you belong. If you are elite, as it showed in the first round, this will not be a problem. 5th in your conference? (SC/Bama) you lost that right at saying you are 1st in the entire country.

[@JoshPateCFB]

The opposite is actually true.

[@user-tz2zz5ij1s]

@@JoshPateCFBI agree. Unchecked NIL is going to give us the same 10ish teams every year. Few schools can compete with the money Texas, Texas A&M, Ohio State, Michigan, Stanford (if they get serious), and a handful of others. It’s not just about talent, it’s about paying for quality coaches and getting out of a bad deal with a coach, like A&M did. I’m an Aggie alum, that 75 million people laugh about it isn’t even noticeable in our books. I give it 4 years and it’s a field of 10 legit contenders, and all the rest. The same 10 year in and out until regulation happens.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

This is utterly wishful thinking, to put it kindly. To think the winning programs won't just get richer is delusional. By what reason does a 5 star HS athlete see the predictable top 4-6 teams continually make and win the championship think himself "now I'll go to one of the 8 teams they always beat?" Winners gravitate to winning. Winning begets more funding, which begets more NIL, which begets even more top talent. To the victor go the spoils. The rich get richer, the poor get poorer. Telling yourself this trend is going to magically reverse is absurd. Just because parity would be nice doesn't mean it's going to happen because more teams are sent to the slaughter each playoff.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

@@user-tz2zz5ij1s Exactly. This sport is going to be squeezed into maybe a dozen programs with the funds to compete with each other, and we'll still have the have-nots clamoring for a 64 team playoff so that the "little guys" have a chance. Newsflash, you let large companies operate long enough, they buy up all the startups and acquire all the competition until you have small handful off conglomerates competing with each other and everyone either working for them or priced out of competing. It's inevitable when money becomes the dictating force of competition. College football used to be somewhat shielded from the phenomenon of monopolization, but the TV money got too big and university scholarships no longer mattered when it came to building a roster.

[@randombutrelevant]

Or... or... were they top programs that got top talent which made them top programs? You really think the committees ever thought 'These guys gotta be in, they aren't doing great at recruiting so far and need a boost' ? Seriously? Nah, they got in BECAUSE they were the best at recruiting and developing players. That is never going to change, with or without NIL, if NIL is basically 'recruiting' now, fine, then it is. Then you have to develop. However, if you getting 5 stars (via money or your awesome academic program) and the other school is not, you will be the winner, it is that simple. NIL will level the playing field ever so slightly, however, we will see... over time, it will be? About all the same schools that were making it before will be making it now. And who are those schools? The ones with the ability to recruit and develop NOT 'the ones who get in now vs before because the format got expanded' In the end, big ten (or 51, whatever it is now) and SEC will form their own leagues and this will likely be within 2 years... since, next year another ASU or Boise will get in, get demo'd and the Ole Miss or insert Big Ten team here that got left out, will annoy SEC and Big Ten so much, they will just walk away. Oh, and, yeah... money... for the conference, for their schools. In effect, they will see it as ASU or Boise or whoever 'taking' their money... they are not gonna put up with that for more than 2 years. Watch

[@stevelizzio1785]

Love the 12 team playoff … even though half the teams probably don’t have a shot to win it all, we have more games without the opt outs ….

[@jimmyjam5453]

Josh we had blowouts when there were only 2 teams....and sometimes it was from the underdog.....it's going to happen every year and the rating will be great 👍

[@taylorcrook144]

the ratings were not particularly good this year….

[@mr.dschannel8800]

@@taylorcrook144who told you ratings weren’t good this year? The ratings where good in my eyes 🤷🏾‍♂️ The regular season was more competitive than it’s been in years

[@funny2thag]

Apparently the first round games save OSU/TENN had poor ratings. The games on TNT/MAX were especially low.

[@gibbyshorts458]

Every single first round game was not competitive. It’s not like 2 out of 4 or 1 was, they all were

[@charliegriffey7773]

@@funny2thag probably because TNT is a cable station after people cut cable.

[@Humbled_Mumbles]

Can we stop with all this playoffs are too much, and the blowouts are evidence? There have been many national championship games, in all formats of college football throughout the years, from poll voters, to the BCS, the 4 team format, and the current version, where blowouts happen. 1995: 38 points. Nebraska 62, Florida 24 1996: 32 points Florida 52, Florida State 20 1999: 17 points. Florida State 46, Virginia Tech 29 (BCS) 2001: 23 points. Miami 37, Nebraska 14, (BCS) 2004: 36 points. USC 55, Oklahoma 19 (BCS) 2006: 27 points. Florida 41, Ohio St. 14 (BCS) 2007: 14 points. LSU 38, Ohio State 14 (BCS) 2009: 16 points. Alabama 37, Texas 21 (BCS) 2011: 21 points. Alabama 21, LSU 0 (BCS) 2012: 28 points. Alabama 48, Notre Dame 14 (BCS) 2014: 22 points. Ohio State 42, Oregon 20 (CFP)) 2018: 28 points. Clemson 44, Alabama 16 (CFP) 2019: 17 points. LSU 42, Clemson 25 (CFP) 2020: 28 points. Alabama 52, Ohio State 24 (CFP) 2021: 15 points. Georgia 33, Alabama 18 (CFP) 2022: 58 points. Georgia 65, TCU 7 (CFP) I say we expand to 25 teams. ALL conference champs get in, but we seed them accordingly to their rankings, not just because they won the conference. Top 8 get a bye. Last 2 have a play in game, and then the bottom 16 play for the right to move on against the bye teams. There will be blowouts. There always will be, but why not just sit back and enjoy even more meaningful college football, instead of these bowl games where half the teams opt out, or do not even play their best players? Like in basketball, once in a blue moon, we will get that lower seed that shocks everyone and wins their first round game, maybe even the second round. People will love it. People will hate it. But some people will also always complain about the system, and someone will always get left out. Just a couple paragraphs of thoughts lol

[@RB-.-]

So we're going to destroy what made CFB so great (the do or die high stakes regular season) so that "every once in a blue moon" a charity team might win a game?

[@Humbled_Mumbles]

@@RB-.- That is not the point. Everyone complains that someone is left out. We also complain about blowouts. Some one will always be left out and teams have been blown out in the championship game many, many times. Do you get upset when a 15 seed makes a run in March Madness? Of course not. It's exciting (unless your team was one of the teams it beat). Rankings and conference championships have very little value now when it comes to making a 12 team playoff. So my idea was to allow more meaningful football. And if a lower seed wins two games and gets to the final four, then so be it.

[@cesardejeronimo8184]

Bruv teams will be on their 4th string players by the time they reach the final lmao Let's not forget these are college students and still need to be in class 😂

[@MattBuild4]

@@RB-.- "So we're going to destroy what made CFB so great (the do or die high stakes regular season)" This is a fantasy...... historically this doesnt make any sense. Check the seasons on his list - 2001 nebraska straight up got blown out by Colorado that year by 38, yet made the title over them anyways. 2003 Oklahoma got blown out vs KSU by 35. 2007 - 7 of the top 8 teams had 2 losses. 2011 Alabama already lost to LSU during the season. 18 teams went undefeated in the BCS era and never made it. This idea that the regular season ever mattered is a joke.

[@Humbled_Mumbles]

@cesardejeronimo8184 Teams are already playing a potential 15 games. Let's be honest, these kids are professionals now. Why not treat them as such? No need for pointless directional schools to be scheduled. Play your conference games and keep the rivalry games on schedule. It would work out to about the same amount of games.

[@michaelfett9098]

“Where do I come from?” Going .500 and getting a bowl game and having stands that are less filled than Texas High School football game does that make sense. An expanded playoff is essentially to eliminate those meaningless games for me. To give me that David Vs Goliath moment when Boise State beat Oklahoma in a bowl game. Do I expect those Cinderella teams to win like Boise State? No, but I expect them in a 12 team playoff to eliminate the pretenders who we think are good based off brand alone. The thing is my argument was if you were in the top ten you deserved a shot. With that argument expand it to 16. No byes just proper seeding from the start. The top 4 conference champs get in automatically, but placed where they would respectively rank in the top 16. So if one or two of those teams are outside the top 16 then the lowest in the top 16 falls out and that team takes their spot at 15 or 16. Just allow the computers to rank the teams with formulas agreed upon. Sell these games to the major networks with Championship game being advertised as its bigger than the SuperBowl with comparable ad revenue sold must see tv. As for the remaining teams that didn’t make it make the NIT Tournament for the next sixteen highest rated teams because there is not much from 16 to 32 difference in scale. Give those players a chance to shine and make a name for themselves if they want to enter a transfer portal and enter the top. Other than that Division 1 needs to seriously look at weeding out teams from Division 1 and forcing them to go to a Division II if you finish the lowest in your conference for the smaller conferences. Way too many teams that are nothing more than fodder for the top conferences in Division 1

[@Godballs]

In this model, you need to get rid of the conference championship. It disincentivizes ever playing your conference championship. Same with SMU this year. It would have been better that they not play in the ACC championship.

[@kirbysmith882]

To take the view of Benjamin Franklin I would like to see more teams that don't have a chance than to leave out a team that does.

[@gelato3299]

Makes no sense

[@tacticalmattfoley]

That's not something he'd say......sorry.

[@gelato3299]

@@tacticalmattfoley yeah don’t know where he got that and people still will like what they like

[@jakeparker8839]

Sure but there’s 6 teams that can win and 12 teams in

[@haroldfarquad6886]

That could be accomplished with an 8 team playoff. No one outside the top 8 has the resume or roster to be within the realm of possibility. 12 is too many, everyone arguing otherwise doesn't understand this sport.

[@donaldbiden9492]

The past five championshipships have been decided by 15+ points. Shocker, big wins happen all the time in football! If they make any change, it should be to either sixteen teams or down to eight.

[@jasonskeel6474]

Agree, 8 if they get rid of the auto bids, 16 if they keep them.

[@StarBoy0100]

What on earth would possibly be the justification for 16 teams. There is almost none

[@dentonyoung4314]

@@StarBoy0100 Money. 15 games worth of inventory.

[@jasonskeel6474]

@@StarBoy0100 Simple, Money

[@Scubadiver-IYKYK]

Past 4/5 were won by SEC schools. SEC should get 3+ teams in every year.

[@jimford6478]

Josh is such an impressive commentator of the sport we all love.

[@randalcquebedeaux314]

Except he never tells us his criteria or how he "picks" teams whether 2, 4, or 12, just keeps harping on criteria which is the heart of all this playoff talk!

[@YodaSmokes]

Nice try Josh 😂😂

[@play030]

Josh, is that you?

[@koreadavis-d6d]

No dude you trying to relevant like everyone on a podcast and talk radio and on those same format tv shows

[@okrajoe]

Wait until we have 3 more blowouts in the next round! The Internets will break!

[@richardgrissom8382]

I agree with you. If the sec wants a sec invitational then take your ball, go home and play with yourselves.

[@Scubadiver-IYKYK]

We do, and we play better football year over year… that’s why the SEC has over 14 nattys this millennium by 5 teams and the NEXT best has 5 NC’s (ACC). There’s a big difference whether you like it, or accept it. Numbers are objective and the numbers dictate the SEC is better.

[@blazer7731]

⁠@@Scubadiver-IYKYKand Nick Saban is responsible for 8 of them . Not to mention, Texas and Oklahoma weren’t in the SEC when they won.

[@Scubadiver-IYKYK]

@ never counted Texas or OU. And without Saban the SEC has 7 nattys and the NEXT best conference has 5 lol

[@Scubadiver-IYKYK]

@ 7 without him…. Still more than the NEXT best conference with 5 🤣🤣🤣 it in fact, means more (never included Tex or Oklahoma)

[@eraymike-e3e]

Paul Finebaum is pissed bc he believes there should be more SEC teams in CFP. Those that are wishing for failure should not get the time of day to talk. When you listen to PF you realize how biase he is talking SEC.

[@roger9462]

IU vs ND has almost 14 million viewers on average… like what are we talking about here? If it wasn’t something people wanted to see, they would not have tuned in. Teams don’t get to play all of the potential best teams, the playoffs allows them to play. At the end of the day, the 12 team playoff gives us all more football, stop crying about it ffs

[@tobygilliland7257]

BEST COLLEGE FOOTBALL SHOW PERIOD!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE AND GOD BLESS 🙏🏻

[@CWR173]

8 of the 16 BCS title games were won by 14 points or more. 18 of the 30 previous 4 team CFP games were won by 14 points or more. There’s no fix to reduce blowouts unless refs are paid to keep the games close.

[@cwruhsk5]

In 2006, Boise St beat #7 OU in Fiesta Bowl to go undefeated. In 2009, Utah beat #4 Alabama in Sugar Bowl to go undefeated. In 2017 UCF beat #7 Auburn in Peach Bowl to go undefeated. Do you think those teams would have never ever won the national championship if they were given a chance?

[@VeryGoodDeals]

They wouldve never won the natty

[@chikwadokanu9365]

Josh, I'm a Big 12 fan, and I don't agree with you on everything, but you probably just explained my position better than I could have.

[@es330td]

Texas-Ex here. I have long felt that the purpose of a playoff is to determine a national champion by matching teams from conferences that most likely didn't play in the regular season. Over the past years every power conference could claim a national champion, back when every big conference could produce a legit conference champion. I felt the four team model was insufficient because with five power conferences and Notre Dame a legit contender could be left out. In 2004 undefeated Auburn was left out of the two team BCS. In 2023 undefeated FSU was left out of the four team CFP. I have been of the opinion that the best playoff format when the Pac-10 was a conference was the field should be the champions of each major conference, Notre Dame if their record was at least as good as the worst conference champion, the highest group of five champion and the next highest ranked team or teams to fill out an eight team field.

[@davidbennett3183]

So if Georgia meets Texas in the National Championship game, and Texas wins, then the Longhorns are national champions. Or are they? Georgia will have beaten Texas two out of three games and perhaps deserve to claim the national championship title as much as Texas. With two losses to the same team (the conference champion), should Texas have been eliminated from the playoffs to begin with?

[@TracerPhill]

Not to mention, GA is the only ranked team TX played this year.

[@GBU61]

Absolutely Texas would be the Champions because it won games in the playoffs against teams from across the country, not just the SEC. Same can be said for Ohio State if it advances over Oregon after losing to the Ducks in the regular season.

[@prestonharris7406]

Do the chiefs who lost to the bills in the regular season but beat them in the playoffs not get to claim a Super Bowl? What a stupid take.

[@justinbrosious6601]

It’s not gone to happen so…

[@haroldfarquad6886]

We've just backed our way into doubting the "true" national champion again like 1997 by all this expansion. Oregon/Ohio state round 2 is happening, Texas/UGA round 2 already happened, and those are likely the 4 best teams in the country. Even a 4 team playoff would produce the same mix. This year made a case for the BCS to come back - Big10 champ vs. SEC champ would be fine by me.

[@JoshPateCFB]

Keep the show free - SUBSCRIBE to the channel! - JP

[@grant2989]

If we go the “best” route instead of the “most deserving” route, then we might as well seed the playoffs on national signing day and just base it off number of 5-stars since that’s all some people care about. Obviously these people don’t care about who wins on the field. It’s only about who wins according to Vegas bookies.

[@johnbochenek5526]

The problem with the four team playoff was that two or three teams could be in from the same conference. The problem with twelve teams is the vast difference in talent between one and twelve. Eight teams - preferably starting with the four conference championship games - is the best scenario. The four winners playoff on New Year's and the Natty is a week later.

[@kylethomas2993]

8:05 several 4 seeds won it, not sure how that means there were too many

[@charleswu1541]

Those teams were Ohio State in '14 and Bama in '18. Georgia won as a three seed in '21. They're all blue chip programs. It's just like the basketball tourney where an 8 seed Uconn wins, but they're a blue chip. The cinderellas have no shot under the format, but the blue chip progams like it because it allows them to win a title even if they slip during the regular season.

[@TalKScribe]

Football is a violent sport, and even without injuries, takes miles off your tread every game you play. These first round games - all of them - were pointless and worthless, and the NIL money is not going to make up the difference that these college players are going to lose playing up to 16(!) games for 4 years. The correct number of playoff teams was always 8. When there were no playoffs, the correct number was 8. When there was a 2 team playoff, the correct number was 8. When there were 4, the correct number was 8, and now that they went to 12 - skipping 8 - it's still 8! Put on three rounds of competitive games featuring 8 better-quality teams, and then let the rest of Div I FBS (remember it's called FBS not FCS) go back to centering around bowls. Which in turn will allow good but not elite teams like Indiana and SMU to end their seasons the way they deserve to do: with a more evenly-matched bowl game that they have a very good shot at winning. This 12 team system serves no one but the conferences and broadcast partners making money off of them.

[@RtRGaming-u9k]

Sec teams didnt earn there way in because there sos is way harder than a acc or big schedule.. gtfoh

[@mr.dschannel8800]

Miss me with playing to many games argument, you literally play like 15 games in high school to win a championship.

[@Jalreal]

Wrong. If it was 8 teams it would always be each power 4 champ and runner up. Not as fun.

[@StephenFlynn-xl2fw]

The NFL players are only going to play 3 years, and only a minority of those getting NIL are going to go to the next level. It's a net win.

[@TalKScribe]

@@Jalreal Yeah watching 4 first round blowouts is much more fun

[@nicholaslake5937]

The intensity of the regular season and rivalry games (Mich-OSU USED to matter, remember those days?) made college football the best sport in the world. With every playoff expansion, they are killing the essence of the college game and turning it into a minor-league for the NFL. For decades, 1-3 teams have stood out as the best in terms of talent and weekly performance. Going to 4 made sense; I'd support adding an "as-needed" round in case we see a repeat of 2023, but as you say, our goal should be to crown the best team in the country, a true champion, vs putting a bunch of teams in a tournament and seeing who can get hot/avoid injuries for the last 3 weeks of the year.

[@RB-.-]

I knew CFB was in trouble when top 5 Miami lost to Georgia Tech and NOBODY i mean NOBODY cared. Mulligans are handed out like candy in this 12 team era. Ohio States loss to Michigan had almost all of the impact taken away because you knew they were still easily in and maybe could've lost another game if there was one and STILL got in.

[@aplatinumorange5112]

@@RB-.- Did you consider that Georgia Tech is just a good team with some flaws? They came dangerously close to upsetting UGA.

[@jakeparker8839]

Not sure how you can watch what happened after that game and what it meant to those kids and staff and say The Game didn’t matter. Remember when OSU lost and got in under the 4 team format?

[@nicholaslake5937]

@@RB-.- Yep....in the past, any team with 1 loss was likely out and needed chips to fall in order to get into the final. 2 losses, with neither being in a conference championship game? That should be an automatic disqualification. How many times did FSU-UF, FSU-Miami, OSU-Mich, Bama-Auburn, TX-OK, etc result in the loser stewing about it for a year while the winner (in some cases) went on to play for all the marbles? For the fans, it was awesome, and it made CF truly stand out as something special. In most every other league the expression "every week matters" is simply a cliche, and largely mocked by the end results....with CF it was true. For anyone that wants an expanded playoff; we already had the best one in the world, and it started in Week 1. Win all your games, and you are in (in almost every case, and this is why going to 4 made sense as over the years there have been some controversies).....and if you were having a bad year, what was better than knocking your rival out of it? Any honest fan has to admit that there are never 12 teams that deserve a shot based on their performance, as they had their shot and blew it, and any talk of expansion is ludicrous. Rewarding mediocrity and punishing excellence is the opposite of what CF used to be.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

The problem is the number of people who see more games as entertainment outnumber who see football as a competition. TV execs know there are more mindless eyeballs out there willing to watch slop than there are true fans who want to see the best compete against each other.

[@mat.356]

The topic became controversial the moment the clowns from ESPN and SEC started this very stupid argument of how teams are selected for the playoffs. CFP committee screwed things up last year leaving FSU out and putting Bama in, so this year they knew they could not do the same. This year 12 Playoff teams deserved to be in and that is it. This is not an invitational like ESPN and the SEC want it to be.

[@NDependentColts]

Josh is cooking. Unfortunately, the “better” team isn’t going to get in if they don’t win the games they need to win. You need teams like Boise, SMU, IU to keep college football alive. The season we load up 10-12 BIG ten and SEC teams in the 12 team playoff due to power rankings is the season we kill college football. The talent pool all goes to maybe 20-25 teams. Boots on the ground, in the real world - me and my buddies loved this season of college football. ALMOST all normal people I talk to aren’t complaining about this weekend until I get on these damn apps.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

Newsflash friend, college football is already dead, it just hasn't hit the dirt yet. The top talent is already concentrated at the top, the expansion is going to concentrate it further. Top recruits will see the same programs winning, predictably, and gravitate toward them even more. Give it 5-10 years and you will see this sport has condensed into only about a dozen programs ever featured in the semi-final games. Remember this in a decade and ask yourself if this expansion improved the lot of teams outside those dozen.

[@jimcolbert4835]

The top talent can also be at a Boise St. Embrace it. enjoy it.

[@NDependentColts]

@ not sure what college football you’ve been watching. More parity in college football than ever before

[@luvvv4ymssss]

Where I'm coming from: Someone who likes to watch a wide range of sports. Across these various sports, two things stick out: 1. There have been over 220 wild card teams in the NFL Playoffs. Only 11 have made it to the Super Bowl. In college football, the chance of a lower seed team to win the Championship is close to 0%. 2. Playoffs, specifically ones that deal with various conferences or countries, is a blend of who is the most-deserving and who is the best while maintaining the integrity and spirit of competition. A playoff 1) endures a champion is earned through direct competition, not polls or opinions, 2) rewards teams for their achievements throughout the season, and 3) captivates fans and draws massive attention by ideally giving all teams a pathway to the title regardless of their brand or historical success. Solution: A dynamic, flexible playoff system. Minimum: 4 teams. Maximum: 8 teams. Avoids forcing undeserving teams in a playoff or exclusing strong ones in a year with a deep field. 1st round byes for top teams in odd-numbered playoffs. First-round games at higher-seeded team's home field. Semifinals and finals on neutral. Committee transparency by detailed rankings and justifications. Automatic bids reserved for the most "deserving", i.e. a Power-4 conference champion that meets a minimum threshold of performance predetermined at the creation of the playoff. At-large bids for the "best" teams who didn't win a conference, but are clearly playoff-caliber by, once again, a predetermined set of criteria made when the Playoff is created.

[@PanthersFan44]

I still maintain that the 12 team playoff is the best thing to happen to modern day college football. It wouldn’t have worked in 1970, or 2000, or even as recent as 10 years ago. But it works now because bowl games don’t matter and fans should have something more to look towards at the end of the season. As a Texas A&M fan, it was a nice change of pace to not have the season over after the week 1 loss.

[@tacticalmattfoley]

If you have to normalize something, it was never normal to begin with....the fact that it wouldn't have worked at any other time but right now explains that it's not a good system for this level of college football.

[@MaryKJones12]

Here is my issue. College football is now NFL 2.O. I’ve watched more pro ball this year than ever before. I do think there needs to be a discussion on how you keep what makes college football unique before they start losing their audience. Between NIL, transfer portal, and the playoff I don’t find the sport as engaging. Loyalty of players is now dead, there is more loyalty in the NFL at this point. We’ve got a playoff system that will never truly be “fair” due to super conferences which is not as much of an issue in NFL. And to top it off we university ADs begging for money so they can buy a good team. It’s just a shame and I hate so see it, but as a fan what I can control… if I turn the TV. I didn’t watch one playoff game this weekend and guess what I didn’t miss anything because they were dull and predictable. How do we fix college football before it destroys itself and then eventually the NFL.

[@stevenridgway19]

This. I agree with every word you've said. It sums up almost the entire problematic process

[@Dec-ICE-sive]

@JP: How do you feel about a NET ranking system in CFB like CBB? I don't believe there are set criteria and we need to eliminate some subjectivity. I'm was also opposed to expansion and didn't see the need to go beyond 8 teams, if at all.

[@funny2thag]

Two factors that ensure frequent blowouts in post season matchups: 1)There are a small number teams with a exponentially higher blue chip ratio that leads to near guaranteed blowouts 2) Better coaching/coordinators can lead to blowouts between equal talent. It’s unavoidable, it happened in the BCS and in 4-team CFP. I just want no byes, seeding matches rankings and the first two rounds are on campus.

[@WhiteAngloSaxon]

Football fans are drama queens. Any team that was “left out” could have handled business in the regular season and changed the narrative. There’s a 4 loss team that was playing their best ball at the end of the season and would seriously challenge any top team in the playoff but they shot themselves in the foot. Get over it, babies.

[@aahlsportscastmedia7209]

The reason they were blowouts is because the home team was the home teams were just killing the other teams so if we’re talking, honestly, are we talking about them not having home games until the second round

[@paulidson1483]

Finebaum sounds like a dummy, He keeps saying Indiana beat a bunch of no-bodies well they beat the current national champions in Michigan, I wouldn't say they are a no-body. He calls teams frauds when the biggest frauds in the first round were Tennessee who got blown off the park in an embarrassing fashion. This clown needs to be pulled off the air, he's living in the past when the Big bad SEC did have all the talent, now with NIL the talent is spread around more than anytime in the past 20 yrs

[@temujin6233]

Lol Michigan was bad this year, it wasn't the same team as last year and remember what you said about talent come NFL draft when the SEC blows every other conference out the water with number of players drafted like they do every year

[@paulidson1483]

@@temujin6233 We'll see. There's a reason Alabama is begging for money and it's because they know the talent is going elsewhere for money. Michigan being bad this year doesn't change the fact they are the current National Champions and will never be a nobody in college football.

[@calebbrown5451]

before the NIL and the transfer portal getting expanded to transfer whenever you want, however, many times you want typically there were six teams that were good to elite. Now with most teams having to recruit their own players all year long and most teams are mediocre to good. No elite. What happened to the only one loss or no losses makes it into the playoffs. keep the transfer portal and limited to one transfer per your career that way it accounts for you accidentally went to a college that you do not like. I don’t know if a 16 playoff would work, but typically there’s only six good teams. The rest of them are participation ribbons and dei spots because we have to be inclusive.

[@connorglick5]

Some people have said, after the games were played, IU and SMU did not deserve to be in, what if they won? Then what do those same people say? They might have been quiet before the game then they say something after the game. ND could've folded like they did against NIU and IU wins, then what? Do we then say that ND did not deserve to be in? The teams in, met the criteria and the SoS did not factor in as much as it should have. These teams are scheduling games years in an advance, you cannot predict how good or bad those teams will be in 2030 when you scheduled them in 2024. Like FSU and ND was hyped up to be great game and FSU folded like a piece of paper week 1 so it made for a blowout when they played. No one could've predicted that after the year FSU had in 2023.

[@connorglick5]

By the way, ND was beat to a pulp in the 4 team playoff and in 2012 when they played Alabama for the BCS championship game, so like Josh has said, there were blowouts in the 4 team and in the BCS series. No 2 teams are rostered a like

[@jonathanweaver1785]

I think it needs to be bigger than four, because a lot of talent gravitates towards those four teams that consistently make it; when you have twelve teams, talent spreads around and new blood gets into the playoff.

[@Jalreal]

Exactly 💯

[@haroldfarquad6886]

You may find the inverse is true. When a 12 team playoff continually produces champions form the same 4-6 programs, those programs will be seen as the only options for top level talent to win a championship. Top talent gravitates towards winners, this isn't socialism where the losers start winning.

[@thetony5474]

It’s not the blow outs…we get that already in the regular season. For me a major problem has to do with the conferences regaining their sovereignty because you got coaches who don’t even want to make their conference championship game. So this needs to addressed with the focus being on teams competing to win their own conference and with the best teams from that conference being rewarded with post season playoff spot. Conference Championships first and then the CFP afterwards. You can do this by guaranteeing each conference a set number of play off teams rather than this weird system where we’re trying to comparing apples and oranges to get a weird 12 team play off. Let the best play the best and then hope for the best.

[@gabrielbouani9730]

All 12 teams were the right teams college football still needs to punish teams for losing other wise you will go 9-3/8-4 and have players only play hard in games they know they will win 👀👀👀

[@yo547yu7]

So you think smu are better than Alabama,south Carolina and ole miss?

[@gabrielbouani9730]

@ Ole Miss is horrible no defense and very unpredictable QB would be just as bad as a Gator Fan Ole Miss should not have lost to Florida in the swamp, Alabama easily could have only won 7 games if Georgia and South Carolina play better in the 4th Quarter, South Carolina only got 9 wins because they have a weak schedule idk 2 of their wins were against Old Dominion and Akron come on if they played a real schedule Like Florida they would be 6-6/7-5 at best 🤷‍♂️

[@vinnythewebsurfer]

@@yo547yu7I’m more of a French toast kinda guy

[@gabrielbouani9730]

@@vinnythewebsurfer 😂😂😂

[@yo547yu7]

@ good case, so put smu in the sec they play against Texas ,Alabama , South Carolina , Vanderbilt , Tennessee back to back with 2 by weeks, what would their conference record be

[@RB-.-]

The only fix is to centralize schedules and make sure each team has 4 or 5 serious tests. No more "my 9 wins are better than your 11 wins". No more massive gaps in schedules to the point they're not even playing the same sport.

[@Kyleterp1]

Problem with that are the conferences are too big and currently uneven amount of teams. Georgia and Texas didn’t have anywhere near the same schedule in the SEC.

[@charliegriffey7773]

The problem is based on last year IU had a tough schedule. Washington and Michigan, then Ohio State. The two previous national championship participants and then OSU. How do you plan for that? You can't. Its impossible because teams change year to year.

[@Kyleterp1]

@ that is true as well. Indiana can’t be blamed for that. People are just mad that Indiana got in. They did what they were supposed to do. Part of the problem is there are too many teams in the conference. Texas didn’t beat anyone worth a pulse either this year yet no one gives them crap for it. .

[@charliegriffey7773]

@Kyleterp1 it's just so hard to schedule year to year and nonconference schedules are made a decade in advance

[@Kyleterp1]

@ covid actually proved otherwise and you can even schedule in a 3 day notice(not advocating that). If they had the same amount of teams per conference and conference games, you could plug it in years in advance such as 1st place in big ten regular season plays 1st in big 12 week 3 next season and in 2027 2nd place ACC plays 2nd place sec away or some hypothetical. It can be done. I’d also like to see the FBS vs FCs be the spring game

[@dis6900]

The bigger the field, the higher chances of blowouts happening. The 4 team playoff had blowouts every year too. We will see (maybe this year), a 7-12 seed make the natty game too. That’s why the 12 team playoff is so awesome.

[@GBU61]

The first round were play in games. It was designed to eliminate teams that shouldn’t be there. Similar to the NFL wildcard games.

[@RB-.-]

The only "lower" seeds that will ever make or win the natty are the top 5 big dog programs that happen to lose 2 or 3 games. We've just devalued the regular season to include more make a wish charity rounds.

[@keruetz]

In my opinion, people that support a playoff are looking for some sense of fairness. We forget that fairness is a human construct that does not exist in nature. So for things to be fair, we have to put anyone we perceive to be deserving in the playoff. Do really do that, I think we would need to expand it again. 24 Teams. The 11 conference champions. The 4 runners up in the Power Four conferences. Plus 9 at large teams that people think are deserving. Rank them 1 - 24 and seed the tournament that way, no auto rankings based on conference champions. There will be some competitive games, but most of the games in the first three rounds will be blowouts. It’s the nature of College Football. I thought the committee did fine. I loved the games. I thought the atmosphere and overall vibe of the games was a ton of fun. If I had my druthers, we'd got back to the old bowl system before even the BCS. College football is not about the national champion. It's about the traditions and pagentry of the game. Rivalry games are far more important than anything that happens in the post season. And, I don't care what Paul Finebaum has to say. The more he talks, the less I listen. I turn off and ignore any video in which he speaks.

[@stischer47]

To remind everyone, TCU beat Michigan in the semis, then were blown out by Georgia. Then last year when an undefeated FSU didn't make the playoffs, they were demolished by Georgia. No one will be happy regardless of who plays in the CFP or doesn't.

[@dentonyoung4314]

It doesn't matter whether fixes are "needed" or not. We all know change is coming -- specifically, expansion to 16 teams because $$$. Keep the home playoff games for the first round when you do that, and with the elimination of byes, you can simply seed the teams 1-16, like in a single region of the NCAA tournament. An auto bid (a la Clemson winning the ACC) gets you in, but you can still be seeded #16. Like they would have been if we had a 16 team field this year. Boise would be about an 8 or 9 seed, so your typical really good mid-major in college basketball.

[@g-man2228]

No, it’s Frick’n football…Some days you’re in it, some days you’re not! It’s called a game for reason….👊🏻🏈🇺🇸

[@rynewood8243]

Honor the Spirit of Competition - that's a great phrase

[@Scubadiver-IYKYK]

I agree!! The level of that spirit is different between the G5 and P5, as it is different from conference to conference.

[@AFPride0764]

The reason we had blowouts in the 4 team playoffs is because yall just favor Notre Dames schedule vs NOBODY every year

[@nickma71]

Also, if a team wins its conference, it is the champion and has earned the right to get their butts beat, if that is their destiny. It doesn't matter if it is a blow out. That is not an argument against the expanded playoff.

[@georgevan2589]

Agree, and remember turnovers and resulting momentum swings have a huge effect on the game. If you immediately have two turnovers that result in a 14 point deficit, you are in a lot of trouble, unless you are the clearly superior team. So under these circumstances blowouts will happen.

[@aggieaquarist8470]

Why is there a surprise when a format puts the stronger teams at home against the weaker teams and there are blowout games? what else should we expect?

[@turdferguson4124]

The first round of a playoff is supposed to have lopsided results. If a playoff is properly seeded, you won’t have the best teams knocking each other off early. That would be dumb. The NCAA basketball tournament matches 16 seed teams against 1 seed teams. And there are early blowouts. Duh.

[@Jsmilam]

Plain and simple if Bama and Ole Miss didn’t lay eggs on One of their games we wouldn’t be having this conversation

[@jackladdjr]

Josh, Texas fan here. I often disagree with you but I respect you logic based approach. You disagree and then explain why. Need more of that not only in college football but the country.

[@nomadjurdun]

Use the BCS formula to rank them. No more auto seeds but keep the auto bids. That takes a lot of the bias out of it. Then just let em play

[@jakepeterson5243]

This is actually a great question. Caveat: obviously the purpose of a playoff is to determine a national champion. HOWEVER, in my opinion the purpose of the 12 (emphasis on 12) team playoff should be to celebrate the beauty of college football on a national level. Yes, I want 3-4 SEC teams and 3-4 Big10 teams, but I absolutely want ACC and Big12 teams, a g5 champion, and 1-2 interesting at large teams. The time for great SEC football is throughout the regular season. Don't need a rerun in the playoffs.

[@JaydenHeyrend]

Think about the hunger games movie was a huge success people love all the competitors from all backgrounds coming together and fighting it out to crown the champions, nobody cares if there are blowouts, there will always be that in any competition, it’s also very refreshing to see teams play that have never played before or haven’t played in a very long time it’s refreshing I say expand to 16 teams being it on! Go Boise state! Plus why would anyone complain we get to watch more of the sport we all love and it makes the regular season matter big time, every game even against lesser opponents matter to make it to the final playoff!

[@haroldfarquad6886]

THAT'S WHAT BOWL SEASON WAS FOR!

[@jakepeterson5243]

@@haroldfarquad6886 i hear ya! I never wanted bowl season to be minimized! Glad ESPN told everyone those games are meaningless

[@nathanpayne5358]

Everybody wants a trophy these days. Anyone who says the 4 team playoff is better is crazy. There’s been ten times more drama and I love it 🤙

[@MichaeLMahoney-kr8sg]

Ole Miss has 3 loses. They lost to the 9th ranked team IN THE SEC. They lost to the 10th best team IN THE SEC AND THE 15th NEST TEAM IN THE SEC. Those loses to bad teams far outweigh the so called strength of schedule advantage

[@Kyr0g3nzv2]

The right teams got in, the right tape teams did not. But I still believe they got it right.

[@dentonyoung4314]

I'm coming from a position where back when there were 5 power conferences, I thought 8 was the perfect number of teams (one for each of the 5 power conference champions, 1 for a G5 team, and 2 wild cards, one of which would be for Notre Dame if they had a typical season and one for a situation like 2008 where the loser of the SEC title game between Alabama and Florida would be 12-1.) I also think that powers of 2 are good. We're not shrinking it to 8, so we have to expand to 16. With powers of 2 there are no byes and you can have a natural seeding. I think the Division I-AA, II and III playoffs are all 32, but one of them might be 16. Those all work great.

[@claycarpenter8625]

There is no perfect number. Still gonna have blowouts and people saying they were frauds and got exposed😂😂 should have put so-and-so in there🙄🙄🙄

[@soboredrn-v8e]

Yes but the sec and big 10 are better than the acc and b12. Go back and look at the non-con match ups between b-12 and acc vs sec and b-10. You clearly see those two conferences are superior which is why if you want to include confrence champions in but have the seeding corelate to who should be in those spots, you cant have auto byes and you have to expand the playoff to accommodate those teams. To have the big 12 g5 and acc champs in the playoff then it has to expand to 14 or 16 teams to correlate with their actuall strength.

[@dentonyoung4314]

@@soboredrn-v8e Precisely why i mentioned powers of 2. With 16 teams, yes Clemson gets a bid but they are the #16 seed, Boise is about an 8 or a 9 seed, and Arizona State is maybe an 11 seed. Maybe lower, like a 13 or 14.

[@edbagley2743]

Before getting pissed off (again) the powers to be must instruct the committee what their job is. Is it to get the best 12 teams at the end of the season after conference games or is it the teams that have performed the best over the entire season not the last four weeks of the season. i.e. is a bad loss in September considered or is a bad loss in November disregarded. Should the winner of a conference championship game get in or should only the best teams get in? Should any team be allowed to get an automatic bid (by winnng their last game) or should conferences get the best team of the conference in? Should any teams/conferences get an automatic top seed or should they have to have earned it over the entire season. Do wins matter? Do losses matter? Do wins over non top 25 ranked teams more than losses to top 25 teams? Should a team be reguired to play a certain number of top 25/50 ranked teams and if not then should their selection/seeding be penalized? Is there a difference for P2/P4/others? Should games in the first/all rounds be required to be played in domes or warm weather for safety of players and fans? (remember there are numerous domes throughout the country in cold weather citites).

[@BrittoneyNorton]

Agreed. This is not basketball or baseball. The differences most years between #1-4 and #8-12 is considerable. With the all the flaws every team in the country has shown this season, I believe year to come will only be worse. I also don’t see the point margins generally becoming more competitive on New Year’s Day

[@CDcooper3876]

Josh you were always right when you said 4 was all you need . Expansion to six would have been ok with the top 2 getting byes but any more than 6 becomes a flat out mess . 12 is ridiculous.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

All you need to do is look at the Blue Chip Ratio and the drop-off after your first 6ish teams. After a whole regular season of data, plus the BCR, you will always have about 6 teams who can reasonably compete on a neutral field, no more.

[@jimcolbert4835]

They "small" guy getting a chance is the what makes this interesting. The rest is same old and boring.

[@litedawg]

But they don’t have a chance

[@aphoticphoton]

@@litedawgYou are not wrong. But games like Vanderbilt beating Alabama, random fcs school beating a d1 football team are proof that while it’s rare but it’s possible that the little guy can win it!

[@RB-.-]

@@aphoticphoton I don't think so. Its one thing when Vandy is playing Bama 7 days after their game with Georgia. But in a do or die 1 game setting with weeks of preparation & rest, I don't see it. Maybe 1 win for an "SMU" every 5 years.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

No, the opposite. Giving obviously inferior teams a shot to prove they're obviously inferior is a waste of time and an insult to the spirit of championship competition. Participation trophy mentality is pathetic.

[@jimcolbert4835]

Boise is 3-0 in Fiesta Bowls when a supposed superior opponent had a month to prepare.

[@javier-ro2yg]

Finebaum is PAID TO BE AN SEC HOMER!! He forgot to mention how Ohio State the fourth team in the big ten blew out the third team in the SEC because he is a homer. They were even ranked two spots meaning Tenn higher in these playoffs than a team who couldnt beat a 7-5 team who didnt know the entire year how to throw the forward pass. Ole Miss gave up a spot by giving Kentucky their only win vs a power 4 team then losing to a bad LSU team compared to what they usually put on the field. finishing up with a loss to another sub 500 in league 7-5 Florida. WIN ONE OF THOSE GAMES and you are in. especially the terrible Kentucky loss. Now for Alabama, You lost to a two win in the SEC OKLAHOMA AND LOOKED TERRIBLE AT IT. Then you gave the loss to VANDY A 6-6 SUB 500 IN THE SEC. AND FINALLY LOST TO TENN. THE TEAM BLOWN OUT BY THE 4TH PLACE TEAM IN THE BIG TEN. like i said before there will always be blow out losses in the playoffs when the higher seed plays at home. That happens every year in the lower divisions too when bad conference champions play the second third or even fouth place teams from the two leagues out west. the one that has Idaho and Montana and the one that has North Dakota, North Dakota state and SOuth Dakota. in that division its like those two leagues have the same play as if they were the Big ten and most years the SEC. THIS WAS JUST A BAD YEAR FOR THE SEC. THEY DONT HAVE THAT ONE TEAM THAT WAS SUPER TALENTED AND HAD NO FLAWS LIKE ALABAMA AND GEORGIA IN THE PAST. THEY HAVE VERY GOOD TEAMS LIKE TEXAS AND GEORGIA BUT NOT A SUPER STAR TEAM PLAYING ON ALL CYCLINDERS THIS YEAR. AND THATS OK, NEXT YEAR FOUR TEAMS COULD RISE. I JUST DONT LISTEN TO FINEBAUM AND HIS HOMERISM WHEN HE IS ON. I MUTE HIM BECAUSE OF HIS BIAS

[@litedawg]

Go outside and get some fresh air buddy holy cow

[@javier-ro2yg]

@@litedawg hahahahahahha

[@antelopedon6341]

Your starting question is close to capturing the issue, but the real question is why does FBS play off have to be different from FCS and Div II, III? It is the same sport why different play off formats? I agree, that ultimately only a handful of teams have a legitimate shot, but don’t understand why FBS creates some hybrid playoff monster with arbitrary qualifying metrics.

[@soboredrn-v8e]

Because of the talent gap. In the fcs teams 1-24 are much closer togethor than 1-24 in fbs.

[@antelopedon6341]

I am not really sure that is the case. The top teams dominate FCS the same way the top teams dominate FBS. North Dakota State has like 9 championships in 15 years.

[@madbrowniac7871]

@@antelopedon6341 And then there is the blockbuster of them all in D3 (where you can't be given Scholarships). In three days Mount Union College goes for a Fourteenth Chip in Twenty Three Championship Appearances in just over Three Decades. There'd be unending Pandemonium (The Capitol City of Hell, according to John Milton) if one or several "Blue Bloods" somehow achieved that!😂🤣😂🏈🎖🏆B.W.

[@antelopedon6341]

@@madbrowniac7871. Thank you for another great example. The whole goal is to find the best team. If the best team is a “blue blood” then so be it. I just don’t under stand why FBS makes it so convoluted. This is still college football. If they want it to be the pros, then reduce the number of FBS teams, create two equal conferences with multiple divisions, standardize the schedules and set a NIL spending limit.

[@michaelbalbas]

I used to think like you, Josh. Now I celebrate ALL of college football, not just the most powerful teams in the most powerful conferences. In regards to the 12 team playoff, the format and selection should be celebrated, not disse cted and criticized ad infi-nauseum. When you say a team, any team, has no shot 10 out of 10 times, it's pure hypothesis. Educated, yes, but pure hypothesis. You mentioned SMU, Boise State, and Indiana. No shot? I remember years when Georgia, Oklahoma, Oregon, Virginia Tech, TCU to name a few were highly ranked and were dismantled by the teams you say don't have a shot. Those teams that lost would disagree. You don't know until you play. The team playing the best football in this tournament will win the Championship. If your team is not in this tournament, you're not the best team. You had a chance to prove it. Did you? Now give the other teams a chance to prove it. They earned it! If you really believe there are only around 4 teams that could win this thing, then why concern yourself with the other 8? Hmm? Regardless of what anyone's opinion of strength of schedule or any other factors might be. Keep the criteria the same! Remember, America likes the underdog!! I can't remember a more exciting college football season and I'm 68 years old. Been watching a long time. I attribute this great season to those teams that were trying to prove they have a shot. Don't take that away. If you do, I think it hurts college football. It may help those schools you favor, but it will hurt college football! Merry Christmas Josh to you and Yours! Put a smile on your face and enjoy the games.

[@dallasmustang11]

Purpose of a playoff is to have a tourney for teams that earned a postseason spot. Not just tv content

[@JAaronMattox]

Except the at-large teams don't "earn" a spot, they are selected. SMU got in without beating a single playoff-caliber team. If it were Bama they proved they were capable of beating playoff-caliber teams but still lost to bad teams. Neither team "earned" it.

[@dallasmustang11]

@ in no other playoff system does someone have to “earn it” by beating teams some committee somewhere decided are good. You get in by winning

[@JAaronMattox]

@@dallasmustang11 yeah you get in by winning…the conference, just like college basketball. Then the committee selects the rest based in part on how teams performed against teams they consider good. That’s the point of a committee. In basketball losing to a good team is often just as good as beating a bad team. Obviously record plays a part, but the only way to “earn it” and not be left to the whims of a committee is to win the conference

[@AzDraon1]

Boise, Clemson and ASU all deserve a shot at becoming national championships. Now, i agree blow outs are inevitable. But at least these schools have the opportunity. I disagree that its impossible for a cinderella story.

[@TheDjcarter1966]

In March madness Cinderella doesn't have a shot to win but they can make a fun run I'm ok with fun and yes blue blood will win Cinderella doesn't win basketball either

[@MBarberfan4life]

Josh is right that college football is way different than college basketball.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

Tell that to the dim-wits who want a 32 team playoff like it will make any difference besides injury players for no reason.

[@stevelizzio1785]

Now that all conferences pay players since last yr, not just the sec, we now have 5-6 teams that could get hot and can win it all. The four team playoff left out FL St last yr. This 12 team format makes sure for ALL the teams who could win it are in it.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

>says 5-6 teams have a shot this year >still advocates for 12 teams How does that logic follow? You just made the case for a 6-team playoff, which is fine, not a 12 team debacle.

[@gambittime1445]

The purpose for any playoff is to determine a championship on the field, rather than what you think should or will happen. If the journey is a waste of time, nobody gets better, nobody learns through the season, you advocate for just picking teams who you just think should be there. Sure, blowouts are inevitable. So what. Least it was decided on the field.

[@xuht1992]

Josh, my argument is that they did not pick the 12 best teams, they picked some teams that are more deserving because their win column is higher against inferior opponents. We routinely cannot pick the best 2 teams (BCS era) or 4 teams. So they had to increase the # to 12 to allow for some errors in selection. But we found out that even with 12 they still left teams with realistic shot at winning championships out.

[@ethanml33]

This is the most important segment ever done on the show

[@nateridgewaymusic]

I loved Paul’s Tweets!!!

[@stevelenores5637]

The purpose is to decide who's the best on the field not at ESPN headquarters.

[@Kiki-j2u6t]

College basketball gives us march madness. College football should give us "Winter Wildness"! We deserve a full 32-team playoff bracket, no byes, everyone plays. All we have to do is exchange the power 5 conference championship games for the first round of "Winter Wildness"! 16 meaningful games! Not only 5 games while lower ranked teams get a bye week. How WILD would it be to see more teams in the playoffs? Ole Miss, South Caroline, Alabama, BYU, Army, Colorado, Syracuse, Georgia Tech, Texas A&M, … And it would reduce the impact of the committee.

[@showtale8325]

You must have just heard of football. That ridiculous idea would essentially double the games played ...they already have stretched it 17 possible games for a championship. Football is a serious contact sport.they need a week to prepare. Injuries are a normal part of the game. It's not basketball. Basketball could play doubleheaders if they wanted to. It's demanding from a stamina point...but not hard contact point

[@nateridgewaymusic]

Criteria MUST change! HOW we get the 12 or 14 is incredibly important!

[@Brazil144hopeful]

I thank you sir just for telling the truth. Its refreshing to hear

[@TracerPhill]

The fact that SOS and quality ranked wins wasn’t weighed into the equation makes me feel like they got it wrong. It’s supposed to be “12 BEST teams” Josh. Not “12 Most Deserving”. Everyone knew those teams would get blown out the first round. If Bama, SC, Miami, or a couple others were in, then the games would have been worth watching. I think the ratings prove my point. Nobody cares about some of those teams. Makes for boring football.

[@wesr1490]

I agree with 90% of everything you just said. The only thing I think differently about is I do think the playoff should have been extended now. I do think it should have only been an 8 team playoff though not 12. In the past yes with the 4 team playoff you were good with that. But now with NIL and the transfer portal something had to change. There are just to many good teams now with 1 or two losses and with a 4 team playoff someone who could win the championship would be left out. I think they went to far though going from 4 to 12. I think 8 teams would have been plenty. Once you get past that then you're getting to the Cinderella story you were talking about. But either way they absolutely need to get rid of the auto bid crap and the top 12 teams are in the playoffs and seeded accordingly!!

[@jamesmarshall6619]

I completely agree with you. One of the things that makes it tough is there just isn't enough non-conference games to see how big the disparity there is between conferences so that's part of the problem. Other part about using top #25 rankings for quality wins is it's a crapshoot at the beginning of the year in terms of rankings and takes a few weeks to see who is actually truly good so timing of wins matters. Injuries matter, etc. I'm a Sun Devil so I don't have SEC bias but I'm of two thoughts which are the same as Josh's. It is the best conference, this year I don't think it was the much better but still better. I think the strength of schedule should go into determining but just like Josh, deserving should matter as well. I think Alabama and Ole Miss are better than my Sun Devils but I think ASU should be in. I know the SEC gauntlet is tough, I won't dispute it, but at the same time each of these universities chooses to remain in these conferences so conference play is there to determine who are the best of the best. SEC should get maybe one or two more teams than the Big 12 but it shouldn't be an SEC CFB. Teams had their chance to prove themselves within their conference, Alabama and Ole Miss weren't consistent enough so they should be left out despite being better than at least teams 10-12, and better than ASU and Boise St. SEC got three teams, Big 12 got one and I think that's fair. SEC getting three teams in to me is deserving, Big Ten getting 4 teams was fair this year considering how bunched up the SEC was. ACC getting two? Not ideal but not unfair to me either. Group of 5 schools getting one is fair because they finally have a chance to show they are as good as they like to say they are. As a boxing fan who loves boxing, college football is turning into boxing and trust me, we don't want that. The playoff selection will never be perfect, it never was but to Josh's point the spirit of college football is every bit as important. Boxing is segmented between different states, different belts, different promoters, it's everyone looking out for themselves and not the sport and it's one of the reasons boxing has never been able to climb back as a major sport. Alabama and Ole Miss not being in does suck if you are a fan of theirs, it's not great that they were left out but for the sport as a whole, it's good to see other teams that aren't SEC in the playoffs. The games might not be competitive but that's for now. We don't know what the future will hold. For the good of the sport, continuing to grow the sport and keeping it nationally fun, having teams that "deserve" to be in despite not maybe being as good as the 5th or 6th best team in the SEC is a good thing. Yes, it's unfair the SEC teams have a tough conference to go through but the sport has always been unfair, and always will be. At least this iteration makes it a tad bit less unfair.

[@GeraldMothershed]

If it's possible that one team gets an easier path than others, then a smaller school can play equally talented teams until the very end. That sets up the Cinderella moment. It will happen Josh.

[@talcat8031]

I agree with some of what you are saying but not all of it. But I agree I didn’t realize that there were so many different philosophies on what a playoff is meant to be, I think that’s why so many ppl will always be frustrated no matter what though.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

The problem is the winning philosophy is going to drive away lots of people like myself because it's turned a once great sport into a cluter-f*** joke. Football is a competition, not an entertainment product... at least not for some of us.

[@marksnyder8697]

Yes you are correct, once you get beyond 4 to 6 teams. That is unless your qualification process is flawed.

[@JerryHatcher-p5m]

I normally don’t agree with you and have been critical but I feel you are absolutely correct on this.

[@joshuatayloe8616]

My only complaint is there should be a clear requirement outside of win your conference. If you want to keep the spirit of competition intact then that requirement should be a minimum win total. I mean 6 wins are required for bowl eligibility so how hard is it to say x number of wins are required for playoff consideration. At least then you boil the selection down to just the teams that meet the requirement unless a team that doesn't happens to be one of the top 5 conference champs.

[@Bamamike223]

Every Word uttered was TRUE! Salute Pate! 🫡

[@Thetangibletim]

4:59 I agree that’s the situation now. But the longer we get into the 12 team format the more spread out the talent will be and that will become possible. I also thought it should have been a 6 team playoff

[@kyleh1519]

This is coming from a Georgia fan and I fully understand the argument and the right teams were put in based on the criteria and was even happy when bama finally got left out but watching that Penn state or Indiana game I couldn’t help but wanting to see Alabama instead of Indiana just for a more competitive game it was four games of boring football to watch no matter how you dress it up or which side you argue it was four boring football games.

[@dlallen5036]

U talking about the bama that got walked by vandy or the bama that got bent over by Oklahoma. How bout dont lose 3 games and have TWO of those 3 be horrible losses

[@rhrh2025]

Twelve teams is too many, in my opinion. And, playing stadiums should be neutral.

[@lyndonmarshall8810]

The problem is the ranking. On 1 hand some argue a team with better win/loss should be ranked higher, then you will find teams with better records behind those with worse.

[@StephenFlynn-xl2fw]

In a 12-team playoff in which only 2-6 teams have any real shot at winning you're going to have a majority of blowouts, every year, now until forever.

[@haroldfarquad6886]

And morons will say that's still preferable to any previous model. We can watch the regular season for blowouts against obviously inferior teams. The playoff should be a limited field to determine who is best of the best, not to prove a point that your 9-12th best teams are still miles behind the top 3-4.

[@moistoxtapuss]

@@haroldfarquad6886 "Anyone that disagrees with me is a moron, yes I resort to name calling to try to prove my points."

[@1Chris_007]

To say Boise has no shot is ignoring reality

[@RB-.-]

To say they do have a shot to make a "run" is ignoring reality & the laws of physics.

[@JoshPateCFB]

No it isn’t

[@eyeofapophis888]

Just take the top 16 and eliminate the Conference Championship games. There, done. ✅

[@UnconventionalSpark]

A great idea but They would never do something that smart

[@moistoxtapuss]

@@UnconventionalSpark Agreed. There's too much money generated by the CCGs for the conferences to forgo those.