fbpx
Skip to main content

Sorry Mike Leach, but a 64-team College Football Playoff is unreasonable

Mike Leach

Washington State football coach Mike Leach is known for saying some crazy things, and his latest quote is crazy-awesome—but it’s a little unreasonable, too.

According to ESPN’s Brett McMurphy, the 54-year-old coach believes the four-team College Football Playoff isn’t big enough.

Though the excitement of a 64-team tournament for college football would easily trump basketball’s version, a March Madness-style bracket for FBS is simply unreasonable.

Parity is not a strength of college football. Sure, upsets occur throughout the season, but Cinderalla stories seen on the hardwood are particularly unlikely between the numbers.

Consider the 2014 season, when No. 4 Ohio State toppled No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Oregon en route to the national title. Although it was an impressive run for the Buckeyes, reasonable contenders to overtake Ohio State would’ve ended after the eighth seed.

Perhaps Arizona, Georgia Tech or Boise State could’ve upended multiple CFP-worthy teams, but it’s not like Minnesota, Utah or LSU—which each finished in the top 25—could stun three highly ranked programs. Furthermore, 64 teams is essentially half of the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Did the NCAA really want an underperforming Miami squad, a quarterback-troubled Iowa offense or inconsistent Texas team competing for a national title last season?

Short answer: No way.

The bowl system is a much better option for both the good-but-not-elite programs and the mediocre-but-we-won-six games crowds. Besides, there’s no shortage of thrilling moments during those contests.

Remember Central Michigan’s final play in the Bahamas Bowl?

A 64-team playoff is a captivating idea, but the lack of parity in college football unfortunately makes it an unreasonable one.

Photo: USA Today Sports

Mentioned in this article:

More About: