Obviously, this couldn't take place right away, but at some point down the line, is there any merit in the idea of integrating bowls into an enlarged CFP? That way you could keep the bowl system in some form but still have a true and more inclusive tournament. This process already has begun with the incorporating of NY6 bowls into the current CFP. At its fullest extent, way down the line, perhaps you might eventually have a 32-team tournament, each game of which is a bowl. For example, using 2017-18 dates just for reference, you might have:

On or around Sat, Dec 16: Round of 32
Santa Clara, Pinstripe, Orlando, Cactus, Arizona, Independence, Detroit, Heart of Dallas, Hawaii, Armed Forces, Military, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Boise, Sun, Gator

On or around Sat, Dec 23: Round of 16
Tampa, Citrus, Liberty, Alamo, Texas, Holiday, Charlotte, Music City

On or around Sat, Dec 30: Quarterfinals
Rose, Sugar, Orange, Fiesta

On or around Sat, Jan 6: Semifinals
Cotton, Peach

On or around Sat, Jan 13: CFP Championship Game
(location varies)

You could possibly move everything up a week to get more games around Christmas and New Year's, but I don't know if that would make the championship game too late.

I hope that the bowls eventually drop conference affiliations and just reorganize into regional invitationals. Each invitational could then invite the schools that they think will maximize attendance and viewership.

It could look like this:

The CFP
Quarterfinals: Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Cotton Bowl
Semifinals: Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl
Final: NC

Gulf Coast Invitational
Quarterfinals: New Orleans Bowl, Mobile Bowl, Boca Raton Bowl, Gasparilla Bowl (St Petersburg)
Semifinals: Texas Bowl, Bahamas Bowl
Final: Outback Bowl (Tampa)

Desert Sun Invitational
Quarterfinals: Cactus Bowl (Phoenix), Arizona Bowl, New Mexico Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl
Semifinals: Alamo Bowl (San Antonio), Sun Bowl (El Paso)
Final: Holiday Bowl (San Diego)

ETC ETC ETC.......

So, when you get to this 32 team tournament, what happens to the other 46 schools that used to be bowl eligible? Do their fans stay home while some teams' fans are asked to travel to five different bowls over the course of a month?

(01-15-2018 11:50 AM)ken d Wrote:  So, when you get to this 32 team tournament, what happens to the other 46 schools that used to be bowl eligible? Do their fans stay home while some teams' fans are asked to travel to five different bowls over the course of a month?

I imagine there would still be plenty of bowls outside the tournament structure. And the fans aren't asked to travel, of course. They go to whichever ones they can.

(01-15-2018 10:35 AM)Nerdlinger Wrote:  Obviously, this couldn't take place right away, but at some point down the line, is there any merit in the idea of integrating bowls into an enlarged CFP? That way you could keep the bowl system in some form but still have a true and more inclusive tournament. This process already has begun with the incorporating of NY6 bowls into the current CFP. At its fullest extent, way down the line, perhaps you might eventually have a 32-team tournament, each game of which is a bowl. For example, using 2017-18 dates just for reference, you might have:

On or around Sat, Dec 16: Round of 32
Santa Clara, Pinstripe, Orlando, Cactus, Arizona, Independence, Detroit, Heart of Dallas, Hawaii, Armed Forces, Military, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Boise, Sun, Gator

If its a 32 team playoff in FBS every G5 conference champions should have a slot.

But if they are going by the committee/ranking system it would mostly likely be 27 P5 teams vs. 5 G5 teams (maybe 7 for a Memphis/USF Top 25 situation).

The first step would be rolling the bowl season into the CFP contract, making it bidder take all post season. That would help add value to the second tier of football games, which right now outside of a couple of games like the Citrus that always fill aren't worth very much to the conferences. Conferences are using the CFP proceeds to subsidize travel cost for the lower tier bowls at the moment.

Each G5 conference is paying 500,000 for 5 bowl games (2.5 million) in subsidies. A unified TV contract that could pay 340 million for the 34 non-CFP bowls over 10 years (1 million per year per bowl) average could really help out.

If the G5 picks up 25% of the contract value (85 million), 8.5 extra for the G5 a year it would come fairly close if not be able to pay for the travel cost subsidy.

The reason why we don't have a system like this in place today is probably ESPN isn't behind the idea of something that will make the CFP larger and more expensive over time.

An idea for the next TV contract is to move to an NY8 but require all conferences to be at 14 schools to be a contract conference. Rotate the NY8 bowls so every other year they serve as quarterfinals for the 8 team playoff.

SEC 14
B1G 14 (28)
ACC 14 (42)
PAC 14 (56)
B1G 14 (70)
AAC 14 (84)
MWC 14 (98)
MAC 14 (112)

Upgrade the Las Vegas Bowl (MWC anchor) and Citrus Bowl (AAC anchor) to CFP bowls. MAC gets a "floater" contract since it doesn't have the geography for a contract. They get over CUSA or SBC because of their relationship with ESPN.

Then for the left behind 18 or so schools they would get a guaranteed slot in a CFP bowl if ranked 16 or higher. That would be fair for BYU, Army, ND, UMass, NMSU, Liberty ect. who are not in conferences.

The powers that be might be willing to move to an NY8 that creates opportunities for 2 more G5 champions + 2 more P5s. Current CFP contract is for 7 games annually (6 CFP bowls + 1 Championship). New model would be for a 12 game post season (8 CFP bowls + 3 semis, +1 final) yearly.

Against any playoff expansion, but if it comes, I like the idea of everyone invlolved being in one and only one bowl. I say if go to 6 or 8 (biggest I see them getting) then have home games for quarter finals. Losers and winners of those go on to bowls (the winner bowls being semi finals). The CFP Championship remains as is and already should not be counted as a bowl.

A 32 team playoff with all neutral site bowl games would be bad for fans and create some serious travel fatigue for fans--not to mention require some serious cash

Yeah, this isn't feasible. Eventually, there will be enough friction between playoffs and the bowls that an enlarged playoff will directly affect the bowl circuit. Early round games would be hosted by the schools, then neutral site games would comprise the semifinals and championship.

IMO, getting the playoff to 16 (which is honestly the most it should be) will likely require displacement of the CFP and the existing bowl system by the NCAA, becoming the NCAA basketball tournament vs. NIT all over again 40-odd years later. But I don't think the NCAA wants to disrupt the gravy train of college football, so they likely won't get involved unless something shady starts happening OR they see an opportunity to exert power and influence over the P5 (which, good luck with that).

(01-15-2018 10:39 AM)TrueBlueDrew Wrote:  I hope that the bowls eventually drop conference affiliations and just reorganize into regional invitationals. Each invitational could then invite the schools that they think will maximize attendance and viewership.

It could look like this:

The CFP
Quarterfinals: Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Cotton Bowl
Semifinals: Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl
Final: NC

Gulf Coast Invitational
Quarterfinals: New Orleans Bowl, Mobile Bowl, Boca Raton Bowl, Gasparilla Bowl (St Petersburg)
Semifinals: Texas Bowl, Bahamas Bowl
Final: Outback Bowl (Tampa)

Desert Sun Invitational
Quarterfinals: Cactus Bowl (Phoenix), Arizona Bowl, New Mexico Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl
Semifinals: Alamo Bowl (San Antonio), Sun Bowl (El Paso)
Final: Holiday Bowl (San Diego)

ETC ETC ETC.......

I have been preaching for a 4 bowl New Years Day playoff for years. Everything is in place with the six major bowls.

What about making bowl games tournaments. Cotton bowl could be four teams trying to win.

(01-15-2018 10:35 AM)Nerdlinger Wrote:  Obviously, this couldn't take place right away, but at some point down the line, is there any merit in the idea of integrating bowls into an enlarged CFP? That way you could keep the bowl system in some form but still have a true and more inclusive tournament.

This would be DOA, in terms of the bowl system. A larger playoff may or may not happen, but it will kill the bowls. The bowl system doesn't survive just aon tickets bought and TV revenue: the local revenue brought in by visiting fans is absolutely vital in its current form (unless the payouts drop drastically). This means either if the playoff is too big, the reaminign teams just can't draw, or if you go to too much of a regional matchup, you end up with day trips that don't bring in the needed local revenue. Bowl system dries up.

Think NCAA tournament vs. NIT.