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From: dday@gymble.UUCP (Dennis Doubleday)
Newsgroups: net.sport.football
Subject: Re: College football playoffs
Message-ID: <486@gymble.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 3-Feb-86 10:12:57 EST
Article-I.D.: gymble.486
Posted: Mon Feb  3 10:12:57 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 5-Feb-86 01:23:25 EST
References: <366@drutx.UUCP> <8660@ucla-cs.ARPA>
Reply-To: dday@gymble.UUCP (Dennis Doubleday)
Organization: U of Maryland, Laboratory for Parallel Computation, C.P., MD
Lines: 36
Summary: Let's have one

In article <8660@ucla-cs.ARPA> lor@ucla-cs.UUCP (Edward Lor) writes:
>	If I can vote in the poll, I would have voted 
>for Oklahoma also, because they got the best RECORD under
>this system.
>However, I always claim that this system is not the best way
>to determine the best team in the nation. 
>We can't get the best team without a playoff system, 
>as in all other sports. 
>Too bad, maybe I am the only person who knows that!
 
I'm in favor of a college football playoff because all of us fans would get
to see some great games.  However, I'm not naive enough to think that a
playoff system will necessarily produce the best team.  I KNOW it won't end
the controversy.  Suppose we have a playoff.  In the finals, 12-0 Alabama
has an off day and loses 24-23 to 9-3 USC.  USC is then NCAA champion.  But
is anyone other than USC fans going to be convinced that the best team won?.
Not likely.  Alabama fans will go to their graves claiming they had the 
better team.  Another scenario: in their traditional showdown, Michigan beats
Ohio State in Columbus 30-12, leaving both teams with 10-1 records.  But then
10-1 UCLA pounds Michigan 36-6 in the Rose Bowl.  In the playoffs, UCLA 
stumbles when their quarterback goes down with an injury and Florida nips
them 17-16.  Meanwhile, Ohio State breezes through the other bracket, edges
Florida in the finals and becomes NCAA champion. Are you, Edward Lor, (and
remember, you're under oath) going to come on the network and say, "I admit
it, Ohio State was the best team this year."??  Not Crimson Tide likely.
 
So, let's by all means have a playoff, but let's not pretend that it will
settle everything.  Does anyone out there really believe that Villanova,
a three-time loser to Georgetown, was really the best basketball team in
the NCAA in 1985??
-- 

UUCP:	seismo!umcp-cs!dday                      Dennis Doubleday
CSNet:	dday@umcp-cs				 University of Maryland
ARPA:	dday@gymble.umd.edu			 College Park, MD 20742
Fan of: Chicago Cubs, Chicago Bears, OU Sooners	 (301) 454-6154