This week in the news, the Atlantic Coast Conference wants to modify its championship game. One idea was to have the second and third-place teams compete in the contest. Of course, I had a different idea, something outside the box.
Divide the league into two divisions. I’ll discuss how to divide them later. There would be nine schools in one division and eight in the other.
A team would play each school in its division, and the results of those games would comprise its conference record. At the end of the year, the leaders of the two divisions would play for the conference championship. It’s fair. The schedule is balanced for each school in a division.
To help with scheduling, maintaining rivalries, and the Norte Dame game commitments, the ACC could dedicate nine games per year to its control. That would leave three games each year for schools to schedule. The extra games the ACC and schools schedule would not count toward a team’s conference record, even if the games are against other conference opponents.
Simple enough? Two division leaders picked using a balanced schedule, playing against each other for the conference championship.
So, how would the schools be placed in each division? A made-for-TV division pick show may make some money for the conference.
After the CFP championship game, all ACC schools would be ranked based on the win percentage of all games played, including the regular season, conference championship, CFP, and bowl games. Going from best rank to worst rank, the schools would have a couple of minutes to pick a division. Once a division has nine schools, all remaining teams would be placed in the other division.
While on the subject, the current 12-team playoff had a few interesting issues. There is already discussion of a 14- and 16-team playoff. Since all schools with a first-round bye lost in the quarterfinals, a 16-team playoff may work best.
With a 16-team playoff, I’d take the top six conference champions and ten at-large schools. All conference champions would receive the lowest seeds. The round of 16 games would be played in the lower-seed campus stadium.
After the round of 16, the quarterfinals would match the lowest remaining seeds against the highest remaining seeds. This process is not reseeding but rather rematching. The exact process would be used to determine semifinal games. Sure, the eighth and ninth-seeded schools may have a more challenging route than the 11th-seeded school playing against the sixth-seeded school. But if the 11th seed wins, their next game might be against the first-seeded school.
With a 14-team playoff, I’d take the top five conference champions and nine at-large schools. I’d use the same process as the 16-school playoff, with the first and second seeds receiving first-round byes.
To reward teams that make the playoffs and lose in the round of 16, they could still be included in a bowl game.
I like the college football tier structure idea I’ve written about. But we’re a playoff-crazed society.