So, we all know about the playoffs, but how about this?

 

There are 119 teams in Division I-A football. Not all of these teams deserve to be in Division I-A football (see: FIU). There are also a group of teams from DI-AA that might deserve to be up in the big time (Appalachian State, anyone?). So why not make this a reality?

 

Institute relegation for the two divisions. Now, here are the options:

 

Option A: Bottom nine teams in DI-A are automatically sent down to DI-AA. Ties are broken by one game playoff, home field given to the team with the better record the year before.

 

Top five teams in DI-AA are automatically sent up to DI-A for the following season. Teams #6-21 are thrown into a sixteen team playoff, with the teams ranked higher getting home field advantage in the individual games. Teams are thrown into four pools - 6-9 in A, 10-13 in B, etc. (yes, like the Champions League) - and one from each pool is placed into each branch of the playoff tree. Winners of the four branches get the remaining four spots, and up they come.

 

DI-A conferences that lost a team get first crack at teams that come up, with others getting second shot. Teams not selected for a conference remain as independents.

 

Option B: Same rules for teams sent down from DI-A.

 

Top five teams in DI-AA automatically moved up. Teams #6-21 are moved into four groups by the same governing rules, but this time they play a round robin. Top team from each group moves up. Ties are broken by a one game playoff on a neutral field.

 

Same conference rules.

 

Option C: Nine teams are sent down from DI-A. Bottom 7 teams are automatically sent down, while teams #111 and 112 are not guaranteed to go.

 

DI-AA is the same as Option A, but the lowest seeds that come out of tournament square off against team #111 and #112 in a neutral field. Winners are in DI-A the following year.

 

Same conference rules.

 

Option D: Super playoff.

 

Bottom 8 teams in DI-A and top 8 from DI-AA get matched up - #119 in DI-A vs #1 in DI-AA, #118 vs #2, etc. - with DI-A teams getting home field advantage. Winner is in the big time, loser goes down.

 

Same conference rules.

 

All of this would happen in the time between the end of the regular season and the bowl season, btw.

I don't like it.

 

Appalachian State lost to Wofford.

They were just an example.

They were just an example.

 

Thats not the reason I dont like it, just saying.

 

This would screw with schedules and conferences in such a ridiculous manner. Say, for example, UConn drops to I-AA, the following season all those teams that scheduled UConn end up with a I-AA team on the schedule instead of I-A. Having conferences change EVERY season to accomodate some crap team that doesn't belong is just so unnecessary.

i dont like it perhaps i am one the few who enjoy the bowl season , i think the bcs can be tweaked but for the most part i like the system

This would screw with schedules and conferences in such a ridiculous manner. Say, for example, UConn drops to I-AA, the following season all those teams that scheduled UConn end up with a I-AA team on the schedule instead of I-A. Having conferences change EVERY season to accomodate some crap team that doesn't belong is just so unnecessary.

It's not that difficult to sub out someone like Vanderbilt for whoever wins D1-AA the previous year. The other team might even be better. And to say they "don't belong" when the major characteristic for why teams play in DI-A is attendance is ludicrous. You're applying a standard that doesn't exist.

 

i dont like it perhaps i am one the few who enjoy the bowl season , i think the bcs can be tweaked but for the most part i like the system

This wouldn't affect bowl season at all

This would screw with schedules and conferences in such a ridiculous manner. Say, for example, UConn drops to I-AA, the following season all those teams that scheduled UConn end up with a I-AA team on the schedule instead of I-A. Having conferences change EVERY season to accomodate some crap team that doesn't belong is just so unnecessary.

It's not that difficult to sub out someone like Vanderbilt for whoever wins D1-AA the previous year. The other team might even be better. And to say they "don't belong" when the major characteristic for why teams play in DI-A is attendance is ludicrous. You're applying a standard that doesn't exist.

 

i dont like it perhaps i am one the few who enjoy the bowl season , i think the bcs can be tweaked but for the most part i like the system

This wouldn't affect bowl season at all

 

Good luck getting any I-A school to agree to this and essentially lose all the money that comes with I-A status, such as conference affiliation, corporate sponsorships, etc. The only way this would work would be to scrap the conference system and put every Division I football team(something like 300+ schools) on an even playing field, which is ridiculous. No matter what system you come up with, a team like App. State will never be on an equal footing with a program like Notre Dame and their millions of dollars in football revenue they generate every year.

And 1 bad season or a few bad seasons doesnt make a good program and bad program. Cant just possibly throw a possibly good program to I-AA if they have a terrible season. Like if Notre Dame does go 0-12 this year, they are I-AA? It is just impossible. Like fau said, it is made even more impossible due to conference affiliations and scheduling like I said.

I dont like it either. So wake forrest would probably have been D1aa last year (because they werent good for years) then all of a sudden come out and win the ACC. Just because you dont have a good season doesnt mean you should get punished.

I dont like it either. So wake forrest would probably have been D1aa last year (because they werent good for years) then all of a sudden come out and win the ACC. Just because you dont have a good season doesnt mean you should get punished.

 

Nope, they wouldnt win the ACC becuase theyd have been "easily" transferred out for Wofford! Theyd have earned the right last year to take back a spot from Edwin Waters College in some other conference.

How would it be possible to determine who the 111-119 are? It'd be worse than trying to figure out who should be number 1 and 2.

 

And for the record. Shouldn't knock App State for a Wofford loss. They weren't going to go undefeated with every team gunning to be 'the' team to beat them and they lost to a team that will probably be a very high seed in the playoffs.

 

I like the idea in general because the top 8 teams in D I-AA could probably beat those teams on any given day and by a significant amount imo. And it's a pretty exciting notion for the fans, but it will never happen. Too much money involved with D I-A teams, plus D-I AA loves their playoff system. It's going to be moving to a 18 team playoff soon here and rumors of ultimately a 24 team playoff is in the works. Can't really beat that.

How would it be possible to determine who the 111-119 are? It'd be worse than trying to figure out who should be number 1 and 2.

 

And for the record. Shouldn't knock App State for a Wofford loss. They weren't going to go undefeated with every team gunning to be 'the' team to beat them and they lost to a team that will probably be a very high seed in the playoffs.

 

I like the idea in general because the top 8 teams in D I-AA could probably beat those teams on any given day and by a significant amount imo. And it's a pretty exciting notion for the fans, but it will never happen. Too much money involved with D I-A teams, plus D-I AA loves their playoff system. It's going to be moving to a 18 team playoff soon here and rumors of ultimately a 24 team playoff is in the works. Can't really beat that.

 

Im not knocking App St. But to say they oughtta be I-A because of their win was slightly (VERY) ridiculous. App St is a very good/great I-AA team/program but if youre a good I-A team having teams like Wofford gunning for you shouldnt matter in the outcome of any game. The whole idea just would be impossible to work and isnt even good to begin with.

I'm a Duke fan so yeah, not a fan of this.

How would it be possible to determine who the 111-119 are? It'd be worse than trying to figure out who should be number 1 and 2.

 

And for the record. Shouldn't knock App State for a Wofford loss. They weren't going to go undefeated with every team gunning to be 'the' team to beat them and they lost to a team that will probably be a very high seed in the playoffs.

 

I like the idea in general because the top 8 teams in D I-AA could probably beat those teams on any given day and by a significant amount imo. And it's a pretty exciting notion for the fans, but it will never happen. Too much money involved with D I-A teams, plus D-I AA loves their playoff system. It's going to be moving to a 18 team playoff soon here and rumors of ultimately a 24 team playoff is in the works. Can't really beat that.

 

Im not knocking App St. But to say they oughtta be I-A because of their win was slightly (VERY) ridiculous. App St is a very good/great I-AA team/program but if youre a good I-A team having teams like Wofford gunning for you shouldnt matter in the outcome of any game. The whole idea just would be impossible to work and isnt even good to begin with.

 

I agree that the idea that they should move up just because of the win is ridiculous. (Ignoring the fact they are two time defending champs and will probably be in the playoffs once again this year. Not like the win was something out of the blue.) But the point is that even he's not talking about those good teams in D1-AA. Hell not even the average teams. He's talking about these sh*tty teams like FIU who in my opinion probably would lose to App or Wofford 7 out of 10 times. I just think that the difference between the worst teams in DI-A and the best in AA is pretty damn close.

How would it be possible to determine who the 111-119 are? It'd be worse than trying to figure out who should be number 1 and 2.

 

And for the record. Shouldn't knock App State for a Wofford loss. They weren't going to go undefeated with every team gunning to be 'the' team to beat them and they lost to a team that will probably be a very high seed in the playoffs.

 

I like the idea in general because the top 8 teams in D I-AA could probably beat those teams on any given day and by a significant amount imo. And it's a pretty exciting notion for the fans, but it will never happen. Too much money involved with D I-A teams, plus D-I AA loves their playoff system. It's going to be moving to a 18 team playoff soon here and rumors of ultimately a 24 team playoff is in the works. Can't really beat that.

 

Im not knocking App St. But to say they oughtta be I-A because of their win was slightly (VERY) ridiculous. App St is a very good/great I-AA team/program but if youre a good I-A team having teams like Wofford gunning for you shouldnt matter in the outcome of any game. The whole idea just would be impossible to work and isnt even good to begin with.

 

I agree that the idea that they should move up just because of the win is ridiculous. (Ignoring the fact they are two time defending champs and will probably be in the playoffs once again this year. Not like the win was something out of the blue.) But the point is that even he's not talking about those good teams in D1-AA. Hell not even the average teams. He's talking about these sh*tty teams like FIU who in my opinion probably would lose to App or Wofford 7 out of 10 times. I just think that the difference between the worst teams in DI-A and the best in AA is pretty damn close.

 

I agree App St is better than teams like FIU more often than not and would win more often than not (FIU is pretty new to the scene though and is moving in the right direction I suppose) but having a situation where you screw with where teams are on a yearly basis is just ridiculous. If you think App St should be in the Sun Belt, that is totally fine. But cmon, if App St isnt always a I-A team, dont you think even they would rather remain in I-AA and go to the playoffs and win national titles than do that some years and then move into a foreign conference for a couple years and not make a bowl game or go to the New Orleans Bowl while other teams take their I-AA titles without even having to face them....................... Also, couldnt agree more that deciding the bottom 9 teams or so would be a MUCH harder task than the top 2. There will be bitching about rankings no matter what they do. 8 team playoff - Whats the different between team 8 and 9?!? etc....

Yeah. I agree that the idea just isn't feasible. Considering the scheduling would be impossible. Money that teams in D1-A would lose would make them never sign on. The amount of transfers would be ridiculous. I mean how do you promise recruits a schedule with the likes of Va Tech, Miami, BC, etc if you're Duke and then you end up facing Liberty, Elon, and Furman instead. It wouldn't be possible, but it is an idea that would be pretty cool if everything were to somehow work out. I'd love to see those games at the end of the season. Fighting for their D-1 A lives.

 

Just show me a playoff in D-1A damn it.

Yeah. I agree that the idea just isn't feasible. Considering the scheduling would be impossible. Money that teams in D1-A would lose would make them never sign on. The amount of transfers would be ridiculous. I mean how do you promise recruits a schedule with the likes of Va Tech, Miami, BC, etc if you're Duke and then you end up facing Liberty, Elon, and Furman instead. It wouldn't be possible, but it is an idea that would be pretty cool if everything were to somehow work out. I'd love to see those games at the end of the season. Fighting for their D-1 A lives.

 

Just show me a playoff in D-1A damn it.

 

Agreed - FCS has it, why can't D-1A?

Yeah. I agree that the idea just isn't feasible. Considering the scheduling would be impossible. Money that teams in D1-A would lose would make them never sign on. The amount of transfers would be ridiculous. I mean how do you promise recruits a schedule with the likes of Va Tech, Miami, BC, etc if you're Duke and then you end up facing Liberty, Elon, and Furman instead. It wouldn't be possible, but it is an idea that would be pretty cool if everything were to somehow work out. I'd love to see those games at the end of the season. Fighting for their D-1 A lives.

 

Just show me a playoff in D-1A damn it.

 

Agreed - FCS has it, why can't D-1A?

Money, Money Money, Money.....MON-EY.

I knew that. I swear.

 

It still sucks.

I knew that. I swear.

 

It still sucks.

 

I dont think it sucks all that much. I enjoyed having the chance to see Penn St - FSU a couple years ago. There are some fun matchups that really make the bowl schedule worthwhile.

it works great for soccer, not so much for ncaafb

Get the Big-10 out of DI-A.

I knew that. I swear.

 

It still sucks.

 

I dont think it sucks all that much. I enjoyed having the chance to see Penn St - FSU a couple years ago. There are some fun matchups that really make the bowl schedule worthwhile.

 

I dont want a full blown playoff. The reason D1 is so exciting is because every week is huge. If you start giving teams outs, then you take away from the regular season.

 

Also, responding to someone else's post about D1aa considering a 24 team playoff. That would DESTROY D1 to the point where I wouldnt want to watch anymore. You would have 7-5 teams make the playoffs. The regular season wouldnt mean anything.

Also, responding to someone else's post about D1aa considering a 24 team playoff. That would DESTROY D1 to the point where I wouldnt want to watch anymore. You would have 7-5 teams make the playoffs. The regular season wouldnt mean anything.

 

You mean like those thrilling 7-5, 6-5, or even 6-6 bowl matchups mean anything. That is why I hate the bowl system. There just to many bowls.

 

IN MY DELUSIONAL PERFECT WORLD, the playoffs would be no more than 10 teams, A playoff of conference champions. allow 10 team conferences to have championships, that way the Big 10 can get theirs. Also, force the independents to find a conference.

 

Independents can't compete in post season, which is how its is done in Florida high school.

 

The ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, PAC-10, and the SEC receive seeds 1-6 based on a ranking system.

 

The Mountain West, Western Athletic, C-USA, and Mid-American. can have a play in for the 7 and 8th seed. and demote the entire Sunbelt conference to FSC, Those guys struggle mightily outside the Sunbelt anyways.

 

Another possibility would be all 11 conference champions getting automatic berths and 5 at large berths. 16 out of 119 still makes the regular season meaningful.

 

or even a 24 team field, there were 35 teams that finished with 9 or more wins last year.

 

"but it would take to long", waiting a month for your favorite team to play its last game isn't?

 

"it interferes with exams and such", Div III, Div II, FSC and of all thing High schools don't have a problem with it.

 

Well, thats what would happen in my perfect world. *sigh*

 

and as for demoting and promoting, it would be a nightmare for conferences.