Any team in a P5 “could” play for a championship. If Duke or Vandy figured out how to run they table they would be in. Your post just further makes the point about the separation of power in FBS. There’s basically a dozen schools with enough $ and clout to be a factor. The rest of P5 is positioning for bowl game exposure and the rest of FBS are just background actors.

(01-10-2022 06:46 PM)MTBuc Wrote:  Any team in a P5 “could” play for a championship. If Duke or Vandy figured out how to run they table they would be in. Your post just further makes the point about the separation of power in FBS. There’s basically a dozen schools with enough $ and clout to be a factor. The rest of P5 is positioning for bowl game exposure and the rest of FBS are just background actors.

Even these New Years Day bowls have taken a hit, unless you’re the two in the CFP that year, but still considered separate and above the rest. It’s all the pretentiousness that’s annoying and funny. There were multiple FBS bowl teams that I believe NDSU could have beaten, but like you said earlier — they seem to treasure playing for these national titles from a 24 team field while ESPN smothers the coverage and legitimacy of that truer playoff system since it is so invested in this bizarre bowl set up that brings in the advertising money from a slick manipulation of a perceived college football caste system.

https://athlonsports.com/college-footbal...final-2021

(01-10-2022 07:33 PM)Buc66 Wrote:  https://athlonsports.com/college-footbal...final-2021

Final ranking of #9 in the Athlon poll, #9 in the Stats Perform poll, and #7 in the coaches poll.

Excellent! And, something to build on.