CHANGING THE BCS

Here’s a thought on how to improve the current state of college football.

The BCS system is the current reality of how things work. Like it or not, a playoff isn’t going to happen anytime real soon. It may happen with the next five (or so) years but for now the BCS is what it is. And it is not working. In fact, it’s worked less than five times since it started in 1998.

So with as the back drop, here’s an idea. What if coaches who have a vote in the USA Today Top 25 Coaches Poll didn’t actually vote for the winner of the BCS title game? Under the current BCS agreement the Coaches Poll is contractually obligated to vote the winner of the BCS title game the National Champion (this year is either Oklahoma or Florida).

However, recently at least two coaches have publically stated that they will not vote for the winner of the BCS title game as the National Champion. Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said he is voting for his undefeated Utah team while Mack Brown will vote for his 12-1 Texas Longhorns as the National Champion on their respective ballots. Nothing like bucking the system and ruffling a few feathers, right?

There are 61 coaches that currently vote for the Top 25. At least two aren’t voting for either Florida or Oklahoma. Just imagine the chaos and “fun” that would ensue if the 59 other voters followed their lead. What would the National Championships t-shirt and hat look like when there could be a four-way tie for the top spot? The ESPN College Gameday crew might be speechless for the first time. You can almost see President-elect Obama (who supports a playoff system) laughing.

The best way to start a revolution is from the bottom up and not the top down. The coaches ultimately have their say and most of them say the current system is broken down worse than a 1950 Studebaker. The people at the top of this college football mess aren’t changing the system. What is the worse thing that could happen? It’s not like these coaches would lose their jobs. They get a slap on their wrist.

So all you 61 voting coaches, vote for who you believe is the best team. If you think the Oklahoma-Florida winner is the best then great but if not, your vote could do more than decide a National Champion on paper. It might start a movement to actually crown a National Champion on the field. What a novel concept.