This August, I was following the Little League World Series out of Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Both the first and third-placed teams only lost one game. They beat each other one time.
So, why did the team from Michigan finish first? It was a double-elimination tournament, meaning a team is eliminated after losing their second game.
Michigan finished first because they won the second meeting between the two teams. Probably because of a TV agreement, the two teams did not play the third game.
This same thing has happened in college football. Two teams from the SEC have met in the regular season, with the underdog winning. Somehow, both teams make it into the College Football Playoffs, where the original favorite wins. This format makes the regular season meaningless.
Please read my blog post on changes to the College Football Playoffs.
Maybe we could change: if two teams have met in the regular season, the playoff game will not be played, and the original winner will advance. Probably not; it could be a money reducer.
Double Elimination tournaments work well for baseball and softball. Multiple games highlight a depth of pitching.
The NCAA is correctly managing its baseball and softball tournaments. A team must lose two games to be eliminated, which could be to the same team.